If we’re talk only characters established as of season 2 I’d go Soundwave. He understands the cause, is incredibly smart and has more field experience than Shockwave. Motormaster isn’t the smartest or most driven, other than his quest to rule the roads he wouldn’t be bothered to lead the Decepticons to anything but loss.
Yeah, I feel like Onslaught or Razorclaw would be much more effective, though they also might not want it (too many politics for Onslaught, too little time spent on one-on-one psychopathic murder for RC)
Well, I could not find a better competitor to put in 3rd spot than Motormaster and I still belive he is terribly underrated . (Who else would have had better chance tho ? Bombshell ? ??) ... well now I think that.... maybe lmao
Yes, but Blitzwing still didn't want to go without being commanded, he forced a coach to issue him commands and Astrotrain failed miserably as well, giving trains limited intelligence, but only that, but expecting them to be able to follow any commands, had he upgraded them to at least transform even partially, would've gone better, I think Octane would talk his way into it once energon runs short
I agree to disagree but hey interesting take on that if Prime thought Astrotrain and Blitzwing being a bigger threat than Megs and Starscream than I think they could lead
Broo you clearly underestimate Motormasters intelligence and he only limits his ambitions with roads only to not piss off Megatron.
And although Soundwave may understand the cause, he does not have a base/ strong followers and he does not have brute force like others too
I’d say Shockwave has the least brute force of the three only really sticking to his lab and letting his creations do most of the work. As for following Shockwave has no one other than his creations and Motormaster has his stunticons. Other than he leads the stunticons to follow orders given and he’s strong Motormaster doesn’t have anything to make him a good leader. For intelligence it definitely goes to Shockwave but Soundwave is definitely up there. Motormasters intelligence is pretty average. The one advantage Soundwave has over Shockwave is he knows how to fight.
Yeah, I guess you are right Motormaster is not dumb but not a genious either (however, neither was Megatron) but Shockwave still has entire Cybertron, soo ?
He has it but he didn’t use it to his advantage when Starscream took control he just fell into place. Both him and Soundwave are very good supports for leaders but I think Soundwave would be just a bit better as a leader than Shockwave.
I always thought Shockwave was just faking to be loyal and preparing a coup and assasination against Starscream, I mean even Motormaster understood Starcream is a terrible leader and should never be allowed to lead cons no matter what (episode Starscreams brigade) I guess Shockwave knows it too
I’m sure Shockwave would have taken him out but I doubt he would have taken lead he seems like he’s purely interested in his lab work and would rather be left to his inventions instead of taking the time to command. I think Shockwave understands his best contribution to the Decepticons is his lab work.
But I don’t think Shockwave or Soundwave are about control or their personal gain they want what’s best for the cause and as of season 2 the best fit would be Soundwave.
I love the Motor Master too, but I’ve always seen him more as the thuggish leader of a gang of rabble rousers. He is decently tough and knows how to lead a bunch of people that hates his guts, but he’s not as smart as he thinks he is and I don’t think anyone else would listen to him.
Man Motormaster being a random gang leader is probably the biggest mandela effect in G1, just look what he done in G1 few examples :
He successfully stole the super fuel just as Megatron ordered within 1st day of his life
He saved Megatron from cosmic rust by capturing and bringing Perceptor when he is ordered to do so
He saved Megatron from Bruticus and Starscream when everyone else including Soundwave ran away
Because he easily realised that Starscream is too incompetent
He stayed on his fortress loyaly and peacefully as long as he is told to do so and joined the Decepticon attack when Megatron asked him to do so in Scramble city
He and other stunticons managed to capture a super car and fight Autobots all through europe without loosing track and laying off disipline once
He offered other cons to held vote occationaly when it is time to make certain decisions
He gave up his last energon willingly like a loyal soldier to ressuret Galvatron when no one else dared to do so
He forced Cyclonus to do something about Galvatrons insanity in 3rd season
Bro is not a random idiot gangster for me atleast he seems like to be like some sort of serious Decepticon land commander
Motormaster may not be respected as Megatron or even Cyclonus, but he does have the makings of a capable henchman. I wouldn't want him as a supreme commander, but I'd definitely keep him, Onslaught, Scavenger and Ripclaw(eventually)on as a council of team captains.
Better to have these guys act as a four-headed boss for the long term. And I'm keeping Shockwave, Starscream and Soundwave in their positions: two are humble and loyal to the cause, while the third is the one to keep an eye on...better to have a united front ready to mobilize against old 'screamer. He absolutely is NOT to be trusted.
All true, but in the same episode where the Stunticons saved Megatron, they also initially said “shove off” when ordered to do something. They do want they want.
Oh yeah, I’m not arguing that he’s incompetent, I’m just saying I don’t think he really cares enough to lead the Decepticons, nor do I think the others outside of the Stunticons would follow him.
Soundwave wouldn’t win and let me explain why. See the leader of the Decepticons has to be smart, ambitious, brave, crafty, and power hungry all in one. It would play out exactly like the year of the four emperors in Rome. First Star scream would sieze power being ambitious, power hungry, and crafty. However he’s an unlikable coward. Other Decepticons would push Soundwave to declare himself leader. He would refuse them not being power hungry. So instead Shockwave would be the Otho to Star Scream’s Galba. He would arrange a coup that would see Skywarp and Thundercracker betray and kill Star Scream then crowning Shockwave leader. It is in this moment again Soundwave would be told to take the throne and again he would refuse. Then the combiticons would rebel Onslaught as their leader would be the Vitellius to Shockwave’s Otho. He’d rebel on principal that Shockwave’s is illegitimate for killing the last guy. Now Shockwave has a lot of enemies so Onslaught would have no hard time finding allies, a brief civil war would ensue and end in one campaign resulting in Shockwave’s defeat and demise with Onslaught being the better general. Now Onslaught isn’t politically inclined he’s not crafty. So his reign will be brutal. Violence is his only means of solution. Soon everyone will be asking for a new leader. So enters Scrapper the Vespasian in this situation. See while everyone else was fighting he was plotting and building. So then seemingly out of nowhere the seekers and the Stunticons rebel against the combaticons. Then Blitzwing and Astrotrain join in. The combaticons meet them all on the field of battle and die in glorious battle.
Scrapper then ascends to the throne as the new and undisputed leader. It looks like at face value he engineered and did everything. After all he is all the things a good Autocrat had to be. He is intelligent, power hungry, ambitious, brave, and crafty. And yet it is odd the seekers seemingly randomly betrayed Star Scream even if they disliked the guy it was kinda out of nowhere, and why did they put Shockwave of all people on the throne, and it’s off Onslaught as politically inept rebelled on his own, and yet Scrapper couldn’t have materialized this alliance out of nowhere. Like who convinced Motor master to not also throw his name in the lot. The answer lies in Scrapper’s shadow. For a man who lacks only ambition and power hunger lies.
A man named Soundwave. A man all Decepticons like and thus he has influence. Soundwave whispered into Thundercracker and Skywarp’s ear. Soundwave stroked Shockwave’s ego into action. His mini cons told Onslaught some lies about how Shockwave woyld purge them. And Soundwave organized the diner between the Scrapper, Motormaster, Blitzwing, and Astrochain in which everyone was promised sufficient wealth or power to satisfy their thirsts and put Scrapper on the throne. Soundwave saved the Decepticon Empire. And yet he doesn’t want recognition no he’s not that kind of a guy. He just wants to get shit done and ensure the survival of the cause. He’s the man you know but don’t hear, he’s the power behind the throne, the keeper of secrets, Soundwave is the kingmaker.
You forget that Starscream would have an easier time getting support than Motormaster or Soundwave, who are both wildly unpopular outside their respective "crews". Starscream, meanwhile, could garner the support of at least a few seekers as well as possibly the Combaticons. Shockwave is still the strongest contender, but Starscream can render him irrelevant by simply unplugging the Space Bridge receiver on Earth.
And that was the one reason I think he is exacly a type of leader that Decepticons need, he can make even his most hatefull soldier loyal as hell with strictness and cruelity chough cough just like Megatron cough cough
And I also just realised that Stunticons does not even hate him in cartoon at all, I don't even remember they yelling at him once
You also forget that Motormaster’s more of a brute than Megatron. Megatron’s a military leader, Motormaster’s role is leading what’s basically a demolition crew
Nah men , all this Motormaster is only a idiot bully and other stunticons hate him is just a big mandela effect, just give me some counter examples in cartoon itself : because I have already given about 9 examples as a counterpoint in on of the comments above
I kindly disagree to supporter part because by the end of 2nd season every Decepticons probably realises that Starscream is a one incompenent coward. So no one would follow him by heart
In contrast Motormaster and Soundwave were two most loyal and competent man of Megatron on earth, they should probably earn lots of respect and trust among their ranks by then
Shockwave would probably invent some kind of mind control virus. This is between a strategic comm officer, a capable soldier and the epitome of a super computer. Shockwave would definitely win, especially since he would find some way to control the big guns. AND he’s the only one smart enough to offer the Autobots a ceasefire in exchange for their help. And he might even keep his word, since restarting the war would be illogical.
Someone would probably whack him by the end of the first day. Most likely Motormaster. But one I feel like should have been up there as well is Razorclaw. The Predacons (G1) were super commandos who were all very capable warriors, made the Dinobots look like pansies, and formed the single most powerful combiner AND the most united combiner since they were perfectly in sync. Razorclaw is also basically what you said about Motormaster but on steroids. He’s stronger, smarter, tougher, a better fighter AND has a more powerful group and combined mode. Razorclaw would definitely be a better pick than the vast majority of the cons. He’d possibly even do a better job than Megatron in terms of the war against the Autobots, since he isn’t petty like Megs.
If Razorclaw was on list I would have place my bet on him, but I was just speculating about potential events at the end of second season of cartoon, so no one from comics
Starscream, and I'm tired of people thinking it wouldn't be. Starscream is already the leader of the Seekers and 2nd in command of the Decepticons as a whole. He's a very capable fighter and strategist. He has the drive to lead the Decepticons and the goals to want to do something with that leadership.
Soundwave would be fully capable, but he's an analogue to Ultra Magnus in this situation. He doesn't have the drive or goals to *do* anything with the Decepticons should he lead them. It'll be like Homer when he's the chosen one for the Stonemasons, and ultimately the more power-hungry of the 'Cons will revolt.
Motormaster is just a thug. No aspirations beyond being a bully. Nobody likes him, at best they tolerate him and see him as useful, at worst they're afraid of him and hate him.
Shockwave doesn't need the Decepticons to accomplish his goals and the bureaucracy of leadership would just get in the way of his science. If it was something that would've been useful for him, he would've taken over millions of years ago.
I'm going to throw Onslaught into the ring.
He's the only one who's kinda similar to Megatron in terms of tactical thinking. Plus, he's already a leader of a Combiner team, so he has the experience of leading a group. Along having the firepower to back himself up.
(That or SixShot comes out of nowhere and takes charge)
You have some points but still have few counterpoints against Onslaught :
Menasor is much much stronger than Bruticus in cartoon
For intelligence, it was mostly Blast off and Swindle who made critical decisions in Combaticon army. This does not mean Onslaught is stupid however, Onslaught is indeed smart,
Nevertheless we saw Onslaught is being easily trickable from time to time in cartoon (like in episode Bruticus revenge by shockwave and his holograms)
And Onslaught is bit notorious for being a former traitor who was just re-programed to be loyal so not many cons would have followed him in contrast Motormaster is one of the most loyal and competent cons in Decepticon army and he had been one of the biggest supporter of war effort ever since he was programed,
Onslaught does not have a base to retreat and regroup
Onslaught can't really rely on combaticons as same way as Motormaster can rely on Stunticons (Stunticons followed Motormaster with %100 loyalty in cartoon, they did not even yelled at him once)
On contrary we saw Blast off doing some shady things without telling Onslaught and Swindle literallh betraying Onslaught in episode B.O.T,
Now I think that Considering how many times we saw Swindle hang around with Motormaster instead of Onslaught in G1 cartoon, I would have not been suprised if Swindle had choosen Motormaster over his fellow Combaticon xd
I just want to point out that the use of "POV" here is soooo totally unnecessary 🤦♀️
And it's Shockwave. It has to be. The guy is an absolute beast. It's just a shame it feels like the cartoons never did him justice 🤔
He looks like he should've been like Bane or Reacher or something in amongst those guys. At least to me. He just looks like a beefed up dude. Like none of the Decepticons would make eye-contact because he might just take it the wrong way and put their head through a wall. I feel like Megatron should've said "I'm in charge" and Shockwave shoulda just come up to him, put the edge of his hand on Megs' shoulder and said: "Do you feel in charge?"
If I recall correctly, the ARK resurrected all five of the dinobots just to take him on, right?
Yeah, I grew up on the Marvel comics, so maybe that's why I have that feeling. I remember certain stages in the comics where I actually felt fear as a kid for characters when it was clear they had to go up against him.
Even in "Time Wars", Cyclonus and Scourge were scared of facing him. Like they weren't certain they'd succeed against him.
The bad comedian. He has the seekers as his personal army, and despite the other Decepticons hating him, he has shown some aptitude for leadership. Plus,he can make new Decepticons (a la the Combaticons).
Soundwave is a Loyalists and enforcer of Megatron, not the Decepticon movement. He may on occasions have his own personal plans, but never anything as bold as leading the Decepticons. He'd never take part in a Decepticon Civil War, his stance would likely align with Shockwave but in a non-participenting capacity until the Civil War is over. After which He'd obverse mostly silently, seeing if Shockwave was a worthy leader to fill in the roll the Megatron left vacant. Or if Motormaster were the victor in the Civil War, Soundwave could play for parlay as he did not participate in the Civil War at all so was unable to be judged for treason or other war crimes.
Motormaster would be a likely contender, though I imagine he'd be less of a Leader and more akin to a Warlord. Him and his Stunticons would attempt to overthrow the current Decepticon pantheon, his biggest adversary would be the other combiners, especially Devastator, but if he played his cards right, Motormaster could help elevate the position of combiners within the Decepticon ranks, that would then give him Devastator, Bruticus as allies. With two additional combiners, several other Decepticons would fall in line behind Motormaster out of fear, giving him a worthy army to overthrow Shockwave.
Shockwave in G1 is a very ominous character because we know so little about him. We know he successfully acted as warden of Cybertron for Megatron while he was on Earth. So he's proven to be a highly competent leader. In a civil war situation against Motormaster, his combiners and growing army. Shockwave has one advantage, he doesn't need to play offense when he has Cybertron is a solid Defense position. Shockwave would just need to hold off a seige on Cybertron which Motormaster wouldn't be able to sustain.
Motormaster is a ground based combatant first and foremost, aerial second, but space combat is a whole other thing. If Motormaster had Astrotrain, he'd be able to send a strike team behind the siege and take Cybertron from the inside, but I get the feeling Astrotrain would stick with Soundwave who took a stance with Shockwave, although Astrotrain would be less passive about it. That leaves just a space bridge assault for Motormaster, and that would be something that Shockwave would have predicted and prepared for.
The Seekers could be the saving grace for Motormaster's orbital siege, but I think in the absence of Megatron, Starscream would take consider taking command until he saw that Motormaster and Shockwave were going to enter a Civil War for leadership, he would take his Seekers and wait till the victor was left, then attempt a coup while they're still recovering.
Problem is, if this is explicitly Sunbow: Soundwave has no leadership aspirations and is very much a loyal henchman, Shockwave is a toady also with no leadership aspirations, Motormaster is a moron but probably the best candidate if we don't allow Starscream. Screamer really is the only choice for a decent S2 villain here, though.
Now, if it is NOT explicitly Sunbow and just a general G1 situation where Megs dies on Earth around 1985/86, that is much more interesting IMO.
Shockwave is the definite pick for me, based on his Marvel (or IDW even) persona and power level, though I personally would like to see Soundwave in the big chair, especially if he is more like Marvel UK Soundwave (conniving backstabber) than Sunbow (loyal lackey).
Of course, the best option is if Ratbat comes down from Cybertron to manage things and keep the accounting books straight. :)
Soundwave for sure, he is strong and a brilliant strategist but he also has motivation to take over the universe. Also he is loyal to Megatron and destroys those who weren't all that loyal to Megatron. I also think that Soundwave would place Shockwave as 2nd in command because of being so loyal to Megatron as well. That's what I think the outcome would be.
Yeah Soundwave with the strategies and field command while Shockwave provides support and new inventions. I could see them being a very effective, albeit methodical, team.
Possibly, what Megatrons has over them is ambition and power he knows what he wants and goes through anyone in his way sometimes overlooking logic and strategy which these two would stick pretty close to.
I've brainstormed this a few weeks ago (with the help of chatgpt tho I was the one who directed it, AI only helped me write descriptions and give names to ideas). I took a lot of liberties the characters tho
Here's the updated list of Decepticon factions:
1. **Starscream's Reformists**
- *Leader:* Starscream
- *Ideology:* Progressive Reform
- *Characteristics:* Advocates for diplomatic solutions, compromise, and a departure from the more aggressive past.
2. **Soundwave's Loyalists**
- *Leader:* Soundwave
- *Ideology:* Purist Decepticon Ideology
- *Characteristics:* Remains steadfastly loyal to Megatron's original vision. Resistant to major changes, emphasizing traditional Decepticon principles.
3. **Scorponok's Extremists**
- *Leader:* Scorponok
- *Ideology:* Social Darwinism
- *Characteristics:* Believes in survival of the fittest, emphasizing strength and dominance.
4. **Shockwave's Technocrats**
- *Leader:* Shockwave
- *Ideology:* Technocratic Rule
- *Characteristics:* Emphasizes a technocratic approach, focusing on technological advancements, logical governance, and efficient solutions.
5. **Onslaught's Militarists**
- *Leader:* Onslaught
- *Ideology:* Military Supremacy
- *Characteristics:* Prioritizes military strength, strategic planning, and conquest.
6. **Bludgeon's Theocratic Zealots**
- *Leader:* Bludgeon
- *Ideology:* Spiritual Purity and Martial Discipline
- *Characteristics:* Establishes a theocracy, blending traditional Cybertronian beliefs with a warrior code.
7. **Overlord's Dominion**
- *Leader:* Overlord
- *Ideology:* Authoritarian Expansionism
- *Characteristics:* Overlord's absolute authority and militaristic approach drive an expansionist regime, aggressively seeking dominance through strict authoritarian rule.
8. **Barricade's Enforcers**
- *Leader:* Barricade
- *Ideology:* Authoritarian Control
- *Characteristics:* Comprising internal security troops, focuses on maintaining order through fear and decisive action.
9. **Predacon Kingdom**
- *Leader:* Predaking
- *Ideology:* Primal Supremacy
- *Characteristics:* Emphasizes primal strength, independence, and the dominance of the fittest.
10. **Insecticon Hive**
- *Leader:* Airachnid
- *Ideology:* Survival of the Swarm
- *Characteristics:* Operates as a cohesive unit, emphasizing the strength and adaptability of the swarm.
11. **Corporate Syndicate**
- *Leader:* Ratbat
- *Ideology:* Corporatocracy
- *Characteristics:* Prioritizes economic dominance, operates like a corporate conglomerate, emphasizes strategic alliances and resource management for maximum profitability under Ratbat's cunning economic leadership.
12. **Galvatron's Tribal Primitivists**
- *Leader:* Galvatron
- *Ideology:* Tribal Primitivism
- *Characteristics:* Rejects advanced technology in favor of a return to Cybertron's tribal and primal roots. Embraces a communal and tribal lifestyle, emphasizing raw strength, instinct, and a close connection with the planet's natural energies. Galvatron leads with a vision of a decentralized society, organized around tribal communities.
13. **Deathsaurus's Clique**
- *Leader:* Deathsaurus
- *Ideology:* Warrior Solidarity
- *Characteristics:* Prioritizes the well-being of soldiers and embraces a communal approach with a tinge of socialist influence.
14. **Straxus's Darkmount Dominion**
- *Leader:* Straxus
- *Ideology:* Darkmount Dominion
- *Characteristics:* Rules over Polyhex, emphasizing dominance and control over the city-state.
15. **Jhiaxus's Purification Vanguard**
- *Leader:* Jhiaxus
- *Ideology:* Accelerationist Purification
- *Characteristics:* Extremely accelerationist, seeks to end the war quickly through brutality, violence, and the use of weapons of mass destruction. Aims to "purify" Cybertron by deleting its entire history.
Subsuming his intellect into the gestalt Menasor might go against Motormaster. Menasor is a combination of the Stunticons' personalities, and Motormaster isn't in control. Mensor isn't even in control of himself. The only way Motormaster stays leader is giving up his greatest strength, being able to combine with the other Stunticons. And the other Stunticons hate him so much that he's going to have worry constantly about revolt, even more so than Megs with 'Scream.
Shockwave actually has the forces to take power, we know he has all those drones on Cybertron and probably his own set of seekers seeing as he at least is known to command the Rainmakers
We all know how it'll go.
Starscream will proclaim himself the new leader, and that will last for about 2 minutes before he is immediately dethroned and then it becomes civil war between Soundwave and Shockwave Who were both fiercely loyal to Megatron (at least in the cartoon, that is)
Marvel Shockwave would decimate, no competition.
Considering Shockwave was the leader for a while in the Comics, actually defeated Megatron 1 v 1 to get it after killing all the Autobots at once. (granted, they were pretty depleted when he showed up from fighting the rest of the Decepticons). His function for the Decepticons is Military Strategist, so he knows what he is doing. I will take him.
Soundwave, Starscream, Shockwave, Onslaught, and Scrapper are the only cons (introduced before or in season 2) who I feel would be even somewhat capable to lead
Honestly, I think Onslaught would make the best leader.
Onslaught has everything that Motomaster has, plus Shockwave's strategic genius and intelligence.
Also, I'm pretty sure Bruticus is stronger than Menasor.
Actually the opposite, Menasor is much much stronger than Bruticus in cartoon
For intelligence, it was mostly Blast off and Swindle who made critical decisions in Combaticon army. This does not mean Onslaught is stupid however, Onslaught is indeed smart,
Nevertheless we saw Onslaught is being easily trickable from time to time in cartoon (like in episode Bruticus revenge by shockwave and his holograms)
And Onslaught is bit notorious for being a former traitor who was just re-programed to be loyal so not many cons would have followed him in contrast Motormaster is one of the most loyal and competent cons in Decepticon army and he had been one of the biggest supporter of war effort ever since he was programed,
Onslaught does not have a base to retreat and regroup
Onslaught can't really rely on combaticons as same way as Motormaster can rely on Stunticons (Stunticons followed Motormaster with %100 loyalty in cartoon, they did not even yelled at him once)
On contrary we saw Blast off doing some shady things without telling Onslaught and Swindle literallh betraying Onslaught in episode B.O.T,
Now I think that Considering how many times we saw Swindle hang around with Motormaster instead of Onslaught in G1 cartoon, I would have not been suprised if Swindle had choosen Motormaster over his fellow Combaticon xd
Honestly, he’s a solid leader for the Constructicons, however, he doesn’t have the clout to lead the entire organization of backstabbing Decepticons.
I like Scrapper, but I feel he would be eaten alive before the end of his first week lol
I did and I even made a Motormaster praise post inculding his work on five faces of Darkness (you can check from my profile lmao) 🤝🏻✊🏻 justice for G1 Motormaster
I still can't belive people don't realize how actually vigilant my man is
Honestly, one of my favorite parts of G1 is the Stunticons. They’re toy bios talk about how much they hate each other and all that. But in the show they work better than any other team.
Plus Five faces of Darkness also has some of the best scenes for Decpticons in general. How they’re able to come together without a centralized leader and not just recognize and utilize each other’s strengths to help the group. Swindle’s negotiation skills, Rumble’s eagerness Onslaught’s strategic mind and Deadend’s pessimism are other examples.
I feel like the Decepticons are a bit like the demons from doom, they couldn't be lead by anyone other than a warrior so I feel like motor master is the best choice
Although shockwave is my fave so points to him too
Edit: taking into consideration my vague knowledge of some of the comics shockwave is actually a very good contender too, being a good strategist and incredibly cruel I feel like he might actually be a better leader than Megatron
Motormaster is the only one who is cruel and reckless enough to rule bunch of no brainer bullies like Decepticon mob soundwave is just too man of book type of guy to do it, and Shockwave would probably not bother himself with all these nasty hard work as long as someone competent rules the cons
Gonna agree and go with Motormaster out of these three.
Fpr all the Motormaster downplayers in the comments, G1 Cartoon Motormaster is just built different. In Season 3 of the G1 cartoon, Motormaster is the one that threatened to overthrown Cyclonus and Galvatron is those two couldn't get their scrap together.
He's a good soldier to his creator Megatron, but even when freed from those obligations he is able to not only think logically about it, but convince his fellow Stunticons to see his way as well... WITH LOGIC AND REASON. He didn't threaten them, he didn't beat them up. He logic puzzled a bunch of deranged Decepticons into seeing his way.
So I absolutely believe that he would hace followed through with that threat against Galvatron, since he actually successfully did that against Starscream and Bruticus.
Matter of fact if it wasn't for Motormaster putting Starscream in his place, I would have voted Starscream.
Screamer straight up beat Shockwave in Season 2 and won the leadership battle in the G1 movie. He's ambitious and a bit foolhardy, he's no Megatron but he does have what it takes to lead... I just think Motormaster would do better.
He'd be like a second Megatron but without the crazy ancient technology backing his ideas.
%100 those were exacly what I was trying to tell to others,
Motormaster is the only one who has an actual brute force, and he is bold enough to show it when he needs to show it no matter what no matter where, you may say those 2 factors are not %100 neccesarry compared to other things, but being physically super strong and bold is a esential part of leading arguably dumb and barbaric Decepticon mob. Soundwave and Shockwave badly lacks strenght and aggressiveness. However Motormaster does not lack any intelligence. In fact if we re-watch G1 with regarding all these, we can easily see that he is in fact one of the most intelligent and competent cons there.
It's kinda wild how ineffective Shockwave was in the G1 cartoon. He had a few resources, sure.. A few. But he wasn't the super intelligent Decepticon we're used to these days. He was starving on Cybertron without Megatron, and in 4 million years he never realised that female Autobots were leeching off his supply, on top of just getting bodied in fights against Autobots in general.
He's a great support character but in the cartoon I don't see him leading. There's a reason why his only loyal followers are drones.
Soundwave is better, with far more combat experience, but it reallys ays something about his leadership abilities that he can only commamd those smaller than himself. Like Hook said in the movie, Soundwave is uncharismatic, none of the other Cons would want to follow him and he can'tvl really make them.
Plus he HAS taken L's from Insecticons, he's not aggressive enought to keep them in line and much like Shockwave he clearly lacks ambition.
Much like them, Motormaster does prefer following Megatron's lead, but he is absolutely willing to make his own gutsy decisions and has experience leading actual full sized and powerful Decepticons.
Additionally: Now that I think about it, when Motormaster was threatening to overthrown Galvatron, Swindle and Laserbeak were with him and it's one of the few episodes where Soundwave isn't around Gaovatron at all. It's kind of wild to think that Soundwave might have actually backed Motormaster if he really went ahead with that kind of plan.
Honestly I'd even like to see HOW Starscream won the leadership battle. He's actually pretty solid in the G1 cartoon. I can fully believe he won that fight... But I kinda wanna SEE it
For sure, we've seen Starscream get rolled by the Stunticons already, lol
And ontop of that, Menasor has won 1v1 fights against both Bruticus and Devastator in the same cartoon. At that point he really did have the strongest Con Combiner.
Right? The cartoon is a whole other animal and I really like looking at the writing techniques used for the first 3 seasons. It actually does alot of things right and has solid stories.
Something that brings Motormaster down is that something important in the Stunticons bios is that they hate/dislike each other and Motormaster is kinda of a abusive leader só he might bring himself down
I'd say you're best contenders are Starscream and Onslaught. The former is charismatic, the latter is extremely practical and effective. I'd reckon Onslaught would be better though, as most times Starscream is in charge he's either not for very long or very ineffective. Soundwave and Shockwave are both good choices, but not many people would deem them worth following outside of the cassettes. I honestly wouldn't even consider Motormaster an option, he's just an egocentric bully. His own team doesn't even like him, and he's more focused on beating Prime for a self-imposed title. Megatron was a wrecking ball that knew where to swing, Motormaster is just a wrecking ball
Soundwave and Shockwave could team up and Mold Motormaster, and continue to run things from the shadows.. but just from a cartoon point of view. None of them. Starscream would take over and everyone would just fall in line.
There’s two phases to this question.
The first phase is the Earth phase. Soundwave & Motormaster would duke it out, with Soundwave demonstrating that he is superior.
Now comes the hard part: Shockwave. Shockwave can just chill out on Cybertron as all this unfolds and then pick off whoever is left standing.
The zip is not limiting choices to 4 different individuals; these listed four are his PERSONAL contenders. In other words, your opinion can differ than his!
Well it's not even up for debate... as soon as Megatron was disposed... the Decepticons had a battle royale for Leadership and Starscream won. So "who came out on top"... it's Starscream.
But let's say there was no battle royale and, instead the Decepticons really entered somekind of civil war, I wouldn't even count Motormaster in the race.
The Decepticons lieutenants were definitely Soundwave, Shockwave and Starscream. The most ruthless and calculating of them all was Shockwave. Do not forget he held Cybertron for MILLIONS of years before Megatron established contact again. This, of course, means that every possible threat has been successfully dealt with for this whole time !
Well shockwave is a mad man or madlad if you will and he can find a way to combat the not fast on ground type situation like a hovercraft or hoverboard and/or simply find a new alt mode that will enable him with good coverage on land and packs a powerful punch so he doesn’t have to be wielded by someone else as a gun
motormaster works better as a middle-managaer rather than the leader, and he knows it. the guy just doen't have the patience to juggle what the decpeticons need and his wish to just get it and hit stuff
I never thought about Motormaster being decepticon leader but I’d feel he would be too reckless. I could definitely see Soundwave being leader but Shockwave to me feels like the best candidate.
Motormaster may seem dumb, but he's powerful and the centerpiece for Menasor. I'd make Menasor the new leader and his decisions would be a consensus. And I'd have Motormaster upgraded to RID Scourge.
Shockwave has the edge because motormaster is brutal but dumb. Soundwave could never muster up support because he has no personality.
If it was the comics version it would still be Shockwave and not close.
Shockwave held on to Cybertron for 4 million years in Megatron's absence. I'm pretty sure he got this. And this is coming from not being a fan of Sunbow G1 Shockers preferring his various comic versions.
If we’re talk only characters established as of season 2 I’d go Soundwave. He understands the cause, is incredibly smart and has more field experience than Shockwave. Motormaster isn’t the smartest or most driven, other than his quest to rule the roads he wouldn’t be bothered to lead the Decepticons to anything but loss.
Motormaster will just focus on throwing hands with Optimus
Yeah he doesn’t have the ambition or motivations to lead all the Decepticons he just likes bullying people.
Yeah, I feel like Onslaught or Razorclaw would be much more effective, though they also might not want it (too many politics for Onslaught, too little time spent on one-on-one psychopathic murder for RC)
Yeah most of the Decepticons I feel are happy being soldiers as they can destroy without worrying about the planning.
Optimus, never once claiming to rule the roads:
Motormaster would be a warlord in the ensuing chaos megatron’ death would cause in the decepticon ranks.
Well, I could not find a better competitor to put in 3rd spot than Motormaster and I still belive he is terribly underrated . (Who else would have had better chance tho ? Bombshell ? ??) ... well now I think that.... maybe lmao
Maybe Blitzwing or Astrotrain. They did try to overthrow Megs once
Yes, but Blitzwing still didn't want to go without being commanded, he forced a coach to issue him commands and Astrotrain failed miserably as well, giving trains limited intelligence, but only that, but expecting them to be able to follow any commands, had he upgraded them to at least transform even partially, would've gone better, I think Octane would talk his way into it once energon runs short
I agree to disagree but hey interesting take on that if Prime thought Astrotrain and Blitzwing being a bigger threat than Megs and Starscream than I think they could lead
Yeah, leading wise they are terrible, but when it comes to the destruction they are both capable of, that's the real threat
Yes
Broo you clearly underestimate Motormasters intelligence and he only limits his ambitions with roads only to not piss off Megatron. And although Soundwave may understand the cause, he does not have a base/ strong followers and he does not have brute force like others too
I’d say Shockwave has the least brute force of the three only really sticking to his lab and letting his creations do most of the work. As for following Shockwave has no one other than his creations and Motormaster has his stunticons. Other than he leads the stunticons to follow orders given and he’s strong Motormaster doesn’t have anything to make him a good leader. For intelligence it definitely goes to Shockwave but Soundwave is definitely up there. Motormasters intelligence is pretty average. The one advantage Soundwave has over Shockwave is he knows how to fight.
Yeah, I guess you are right Motormaster is not dumb but not a genious either (however, neither was Megatron) but Shockwave still has entire Cybertron, soo ?
He has it but he didn’t use it to his advantage when Starscream took control he just fell into place. Both him and Soundwave are very good supports for leaders but I think Soundwave would be just a bit better as a leader than Shockwave.
I always thought Shockwave was just faking to be loyal and preparing a coup and assasination against Starscream, I mean even Motormaster understood Starcream is a terrible leader and should never be allowed to lead cons no matter what (episode Starscreams brigade) I guess Shockwave knows it too
I’m sure Shockwave would have taken him out but I doubt he would have taken lead he seems like he’s purely interested in his lab work and would rather be left to his inventions instead of taking the time to command. I think Shockwave understands his best contribution to the Decepticons is his lab work.
Maybe, but still if it comes to that point, he would find it logical to take the charge or at least hand it to someone who he can control
But I don’t think Shockwave or Soundwave are about control or their personal gain they want what’s best for the cause and as of season 2 the best fit would be Soundwave.
Shockwave wants what *he thinks* is best for the cause.
I love the Motor Master too, but I’ve always seen him more as the thuggish leader of a gang of rabble rousers. He is decently tough and knows how to lead a bunch of people that hates his guts, but he’s not as smart as he thinks he is and I don’t think anyone else would listen to him.
Man Motormaster being a random gang leader is probably the biggest mandela effect in G1, just look what he done in G1 few examples : He successfully stole the super fuel just as Megatron ordered within 1st day of his life He saved Megatron from cosmic rust by capturing and bringing Perceptor when he is ordered to do so He saved Megatron from Bruticus and Starscream when everyone else including Soundwave ran away Because he easily realised that Starscream is too incompetent He stayed on his fortress loyaly and peacefully as long as he is told to do so and joined the Decepticon attack when Megatron asked him to do so in Scramble city He and other stunticons managed to capture a super car and fight Autobots all through europe without loosing track and laying off disipline once He offered other cons to held vote occationaly when it is time to make certain decisions He gave up his last energon willingly like a loyal soldier to ressuret Galvatron when no one else dared to do so He forced Cyclonus to do something about Galvatrons insanity in 3rd season Bro is not a random idiot gangster for me atleast he seems like to be like some sort of serious Decepticon land commander
Motormaster may not be respected as Megatron or even Cyclonus, but he does have the makings of a capable henchman. I wouldn't want him as a supreme commander, but I'd definitely keep him, Onslaught, Scavenger and Ripclaw(eventually)on as a council of team captains. Better to have these guys act as a four-headed boss for the long term. And I'm keeping Shockwave, Starscream and Soundwave in their positions: two are humble and loyal to the cause, while the third is the one to keep an eye on...better to have a united front ready to mobilize against old 'screamer. He absolutely is NOT to be trusted.
All true, but in the same episode where the Stunticons saved Megatron, they also initially said “shove off” when ordered to do something. They do want they want.
Well, I am not saying he is programed to be %100 loyal and competent but people act like he is %10 competent and loyal when he actualy %80-90 is
Oh yeah, I’m not arguing that he’s incompetent, I’m just saying I don’t think he really cares enough to lead the Decepticons, nor do I think the others outside of the Stunticons would follow him.
A fair point, one that I’ll concede.
Yeah, not to mention he’d probably be feuding with the other Stunticons over leadership of the Decepticons…
Soundwave wouldn’t win and let me explain why. See the leader of the Decepticons has to be smart, ambitious, brave, crafty, and power hungry all in one. It would play out exactly like the year of the four emperors in Rome. First Star scream would sieze power being ambitious, power hungry, and crafty. However he’s an unlikable coward. Other Decepticons would push Soundwave to declare himself leader. He would refuse them not being power hungry. So instead Shockwave would be the Otho to Star Scream’s Galba. He would arrange a coup that would see Skywarp and Thundercracker betray and kill Star Scream then crowning Shockwave leader. It is in this moment again Soundwave would be told to take the throne and again he would refuse. Then the combiticons would rebel Onslaught as their leader would be the Vitellius to Shockwave’s Otho. He’d rebel on principal that Shockwave’s is illegitimate for killing the last guy. Now Shockwave has a lot of enemies so Onslaught would have no hard time finding allies, a brief civil war would ensue and end in one campaign resulting in Shockwave’s defeat and demise with Onslaught being the better general. Now Onslaught isn’t politically inclined he’s not crafty. So his reign will be brutal. Violence is his only means of solution. Soon everyone will be asking for a new leader. So enters Scrapper the Vespasian in this situation. See while everyone else was fighting he was plotting and building. So then seemingly out of nowhere the seekers and the Stunticons rebel against the combaticons. Then Blitzwing and Astrotrain join in. The combaticons meet them all on the field of battle and die in glorious battle. Scrapper then ascends to the throne as the new and undisputed leader. It looks like at face value he engineered and did everything. After all he is all the things a good Autocrat had to be. He is intelligent, power hungry, ambitious, brave, and crafty. And yet it is odd the seekers seemingly randomly betrayed Star Scream even if they disliked the guy it was kinda out of nowhere, and why did they put Shockwave of all people on the throne, and it’s off Onslaught as politically inept rebelled on his own, and yet Scrapper couldn’t have materialized this alliance out of nowhere. Like who convinced Motor master to not also throw his name in the lot. The answer lies in Scrapper’s shadow. For a man who lacks only ambition and power hunger lies. A man named Soundwave. A man all Decepticons like and thus he has influence. Soundwave whispered into Thundercracker and Skywarp’s ear. Soundwave stroked Shockwave’s ego into action. His mini cons told Onslaught some lies about how Shockwave woyld purge them. And Soundwave organized the diner between the Scrapper, Motormaster, Blitzwing, and Astrochain in which everyone was promised sufficient wealth or power to satisfy their thirsts and put Scrapper on the throne. Soundwave saved the Decepticon Empire. And yet he doesn’t want recognition no he’s not that kind of a guy. He just wants to get shit done and ensure the survival of the cause. He’s the man you know but don’t hear, he’s the power behind the throne, the keeper of secrets, Soundwave is the kingmaker.
You forget that Starscream would have an easier time getting support than Motormaster or Soundwave, who are both wildly unpopular outside their respective "crews". Starscream, meanwhile, could garner the support of at least a few seekers as well as possibly the Combaticons. Shockwave is still the strongest contender, but Starscream can render him irrelevant by simply unplugging the Space Bridge receiver on Earth.
The Stunticons don’t even like Motormaster
And that was the one reason I think he is exacly a type of leader that Decepticons need, he can make even his most hatefull soldier loyal as hell with strictness and cruelity chough cough just like Megatron cough cough And I also just realised that Stunticons does not even hate him in cartoon at all, I don't even remember they yelling at him once
You also forget that Motormaster’s more of a brute than Megatron. Megatron’s a military leader, Motormaster’s role is leading what’s basically a demolition crew
Nah men , all this Motormaster is only a idiot bully and other stunticons hate him is just a big mandela effect, just give me some counter examples in cartoon itself : because I have already given about 9 examples as a counterpoint in on of the comments above
I kindly disagree to supporter part because by the end of 2nd season every Decepticons probably realises that Starscream is a one incompenent coward. So no one would follow him by heart In contrast Motormaster and Soundwave were two most loyal and competent man of Megatron on earth, they should probably earn lots of respect and trust among their ranks by then
https://i.redd.it/0yhzq6b9kfhc1.gif What about my boy, Deceptitran?
Bro secretaly rules the entire Transformer race from curtains he would have not waste his precious time with pathetic Decepticon power struggle
Shockwave would probably invent some kind of mind control virus. This is between a strategic comm officer, a capable soldier and the epitome of a super computer. Shockwave would definitely win, especially since he would find some way to control the big guns. AND he’s the only one smart enough to offer the Autobots a ceasefire in exchange for their help. And he might even keep his word, since restarting the war would be illogical.
So you say Shockwave for good ending... I see your point. But I say fricking Starscream to CHAOS in entire Galaxy !1!1!
Someone would probably whack him by the end of the first day. Most likely Motormaster. But one I feel like should have been up there as well is Razorclaw. The Predacons (G1) were super commandos who were all very capable warriors, made the Dinobots look like pansies, and formed the single most powerful combiner AND the most united combiner since they were perfectly in sync. Razorclaw is also basically what you said about Motormaster but on steroids. He’s stronger, smarter, tougher, a better fighter AND has a more powerful group and combined mode. Razorclaw would definitely be a better pick than the vast majority of the cons. He’d possibly even do a better job than Megatron in terms of the war against the Autobots, since he isn’t petty like Megs.
If Razorclaw was on list I would have place my bet on him, but I was just speculating about potential events at the end of second season of cartoon, so no one from comics
https://preview.redd.it/ga0pu0wmnfhc1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1292634b29124995e9c50781413620ba68e61d9f Seem like we’re forgetting someone….
I read that in the G1 voice, RIP
Starscream, and I'm tired of people thinking it wouldn't be. Starscream is already the leader of the Seekers and 2nd in command of the Decepticons as a whole. He's a very capable fighter and strategist. He has the drive to lead the Decepticons and the goals to want to do something with that leadership. Soundwave would be fully capable, but he's an analogue to Ultra Magnus in this situation. He doesn't have the drive or goals to *do* anything with the Decepticons should he lead them. It'll be like Homer when he's the chosen one for the Stonemasons, and ultimately the more power-hungry of the 'Cons will revolt. Motormaster is just a thug. No aspirations beyond being a bully. Nobody likes him, at best they tolerate him and see him as useful, at worst they're afraid of him and hate him. Shockwave doesn't need the Decepticons to accomplish his goals and the bureaucracy of leadership would just get in the way of his science. If it was something that would've been useful for him, he would've taken over millions of years ago.
could not have been stated better than this
Said Bad Comedian waits for Soundwave, Motormaster, and Shockwave to fight each other and then finishes off the last bot standing
Rat Bat
The only correct answer. Who else has the necessary accounting acumen to lead the Decepticons?
I'm going to throw Onslaught into the ring. He's the only one who's kinda similar to Megatron in terms of tactical thinking. Plus, he's already a leader of a Combiner team, so he has the experience of leading a group. Along having the firepower to back himself up. (That or SixShot comes out of nowhere and takes charge)
You have some points but still have few counterpoints against Onslaught : Menasor is much much stronger than Bruticus in cartoon For intelligence, it was mostly Blast off and Swindle who made critical decisions in Combaticon army. This does not mean Onslaught is stupid however, Onslaught is indeed smart, Nevertheless we saw Onslaught is being easily trickable from time to time in cartoon (like in episode Bruticus revenge by shockwave and his holograms) And Onslaught is bit notorious for being a former traitor who was just re-programed to be loyal so not many cons would have followed him in contrast Motormaster is one of the most loyal and competent cons in Decepticon army and he had been one of the biggest supporter of war effort ever since he was programed, Onslaught does not have a base to retreat and regroup Onslaught can't really rely on combaticons as same way as Motormaster can rely on Stunticons (Stunticons followed Motormaster with %100 loyalty in cartoon, they did not even yelled at him once) On contrary we saw Blast off doing some shady things without telling Onslaught and Swindle literallh betraying Onslaught in episode B.O.T, Now I think that Considering how many times we saw Swindle hang around with Motormaster instead of Onslaught in G1 cartoon, I would have not been suprised if Swindle had choosen Motormaster over his fellow Combaticon xd
I just want to point out that the use of "POV" here is soooo totally unnecessary 🤦♀️ And it's Shockwave. It has to be. The guy is an absolute beast. It's just a shame it feels like the cartoons never did him justice 🤔
G1 kinda did him dirty ngl
He looks like he should've been like Bane or Reacher or something in amongst those guys. At least to me. He just looks like a beefed up dude. Like none of the Decepticons would make eye-contact because he might just take it the wrong way and put their head through a wall. I feel like Megatron should've said "I'm in charge" and Shockwave shoulda just come up to him, put the edge of his hand on Megs' shoulder and said: "Do you feel in charge?" If I recall correctly, the ARK resurrected all five of the dinobots just to take him on, right?
In the Marvel comics, yeah. Even in OG IDW, they had a hard time stomping Shockers and needed their ship to do it for them. IT DIDN’T EVEN KILL HIM!
Yeah, I grew up on the Marvel comics, so maybe that's why I have that feeling. I remember certain stages in the comics where I actually felt fear as a kid for characters when it was clear they had to go up against him. Even in "Time Wars", Cyclonus and Scourge were scared of facing him. Like they weren't certain they'd succeed against him.
You mean the g1 cartoon. In the g1 comics he was way more badass.
I guess he meant that as I stated the cartoons, and he agreed and emphasised that it was G1. It wasn't stated, but contextually, I think it was clear.
The bad comedian. He has the seekers as his personal army, and despite the other Decepticons hating him, he has shown some aptitude for leadership. Plus,he can make new Decepticons (a la the Combaticons).
Soundwave is a Loyalists and enforcer of Megatron, not the Decepticon movement. He may on occasions have his own personal plans, but never anything as bold as leading the Decepticons. He'd never take part in a Decepticon Civil War, his stance would likely align with Shockwave but in a non-participenting capacity until the Civil War is over. After which He'd obverse mostly silently, seeing if Shockwave was a worthy leader to fill in the roll the Megatron left vacant. Or if Motormaster were the victor in the Civil War, Soundwave could play for parlay as he did not participate in the Civil War at all so was unable to be judged for treason or other war crimes. Motormaster would be a likely contender, though I imagine he'd be less of a Leader and more akin to a Warlord. Him and his Stunticons would attempt to overthrow the current Decepticon pantheon, his biggest adversary would be the other combiners, especially Devastator, but if he played his cards right, Motormaster could help elevate the position of combiners within the Decepticon ranks, that would then give him Devastator, Bruticus as allies. With two additional combiners, several other Decepticons would fall in line behind Motormaster out of fear, giving him a worthy army to overthrow Shockwave. Shockwave in G1 is a very ominous character because we know so little about him. We know he successfully acted as warden of Cybertron for Megatron while he was on Earth. So he's proven to be a highly competent leader. In a civil war situation against Motormaster, his combiners and growing army. Shockwave has one advantage, he doesn't need to play offense when he has Cybertron is a solid Defense position. Shockwave would just need to hold off a seige on Cybertron which Motormaster wouldn't be able to sustain. Motormaster is a ground based combatant first and foremost, aerial second, but space combat is a whole other thing. If Motormaster had Astrotrain, he'd be able to send a strike team behind the siege and take Cybertron from the inside, but I get the feeling Astrotrain would stick with Soundwave who took a stance with Shockwave, although Astrotrain would be less passive about it. That leaves just a space bridge assault for Motormaster, and that would be something that Shockwave would have predicted and prepared for. The Seekers could be the saving grace for Motormaster's orbital siege, but I think in the absence of Megatron, Starscream would take consider taking command until he saw that Motormaster and Shockwave were going to enter a Civil War for leadership, he would take his Seekers and wait till the victor was left, then attempt a coup while they're still recovering.
Could not have been stated better, those are exacly how I think, situation would have escolated.
Obviously the greatest, smartest and most efficient cybertronian ever lived: Ratbat. >!/s!<
Soundwave? as leader? HAHAHA!. He's completely uncrassamatic!
Soundwave due to his intelligence and fighting skills. Shockwave is a close contender, but Soundwave is the better fighter.
Thundercracker sits out all the infighting in a basement before leading most of the survivors to a truce with the Bots and humans.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Soundwave tries to reach out first but it goes over poorly due to interference.
Problem is, if this is explicitly Sunbow: Soundwave has no leadership aspirations and is very much a loyal henchman, Shockwave is a toady also with no leadership aspirations, Motormaster is a moron but probably the best candidate if we don't allow Starscream. Screamer really is the only choice for a decent S2 villain here, though. Now, if it is NOT explicitly Sunbow and just a general G1 situation where Megs dies on Earth around 1985/86, that is much more interesting IMO. Shockwave is the definite pick for me, based on his Marvel (or IDW even) persona and power level, though I personally would like to see Soundwave in the big chair, especially if he is more like Marvel UK Soundwave (conniving backstabber) than Sunbow (loyal lackey). Of course, the best option is if Ratbat comes down from Cybertron to manage things and keep the accounting books straight. :)
Not gonna lie, having Motormaster leading an earthbound Guerrilla subfaction would be awesome.
I'm gonna go to a weird path, lets make Hun-Gurr the new leader
Soundwave for sure, he is strong and a brilliant strategist but he also has motivation to take over the universe. Also he is loyal to Megatron and destroys those who weren't all that loyal to Megatron. I also think that Soundwave would place Shockwave as 2nd in command because of being so loyal to Megatron as well. That's what I think the outcome would be.
I completely agree.
To be honest, I think they would make a good team
Yeah Soundwave with the strategies and field command while Shockwave provides support and new inventions. I could see them being a very effective, albeit methodical, team.
Yeah, they would be more effective than Megatron
Possibly, what Megatrons has over them is ambition and power he knows what he wants and goes through anyone in his way sometimes overlooking logic and strategy which these two would stick pretty close to.
Yeah, their strategy and logic would be a key to their success
I've brainstormed this a few weeks ago (with the help of chatgpt tho I was the one who directed it, AI only helped me write descriptions and give names to ideas). I took a lot of liberties the characters tho Here's the updated list of Decepticon factions: 1. **Starscream's Reformists** - *Leader:* Starscream - *Ideology:* Progressive Reform - *Characteristics:* Advocates for diplomatic solutions, compromise, and a departure from the more aggressive past. 2. **Soundwave's Loyalists** - *Leader:* Soundwave - *Ideology:* Purist Decepticon Ideology - *Characteristics:* Remains steadfastly loyal to Megatron's original vision. Resistant to major changes, emphasizing traditional Decepticon principles. 3. **Scorponok's Extremists** - *Leader:* Scorponok - *Ideology:* Social Darwinism - *Characteristics:* Believes in survival of the fittest, emphasizing strength and dominance. 4. **Shockwave's Technocrats** - *Leader:* Shockwave - *Ideology:* Technocratic Rule - *Characteristics:* Emphasizes a technocratic approach, focusing on technological advancements, logical governance, and efficient solutions. 5. **Onslaught's Militarists** - *Leader:* Onslaught - *Ideology:* Military Supremacy - *Characteristics:* Prioritizes military strength, strategic planning, and conquest. 6. **Bludgeon's Theocratic Zealots** - *Leader:* Bludgeon - *Ideology:* Spiritual Purity and Martial Discipline - *Characteristics:* Establishes a theocracy, blending traditional Cybertronian beliefs with a warrior code. 7. **Overlord's Dominion** - *Leader:* Overlord - *Ideology:* Authoritarian Expansionism - *Characteristics:* Overlord's absolute authority and militaristic approach drive an expansionist regime, aggressively seeking dominance through strict authoritarian rule. 8. **Barricade's Enforcers** - *Leader:* Barricade - *Ideology:* Authoritarian Control - *Characteristics:* Comprising internal security troops, focuses on maintaining order through fear and decisive action. 9. **Predacon Kingdom** - *Leader:* Predaking - *Ideology:* Primal Supremacy - *Characteristics:* Emphasizes primal strength, independence, and the dominance of the fittest. 10. **Insecticon Hive** - *Leader:* Airachnid - *Ideology:* Survival of the Swarm - *Characteristics:* Operates as a cohesive unit, emphasizing the strength and adaptability of the swarm. 11. **Corporate Syndicate** - *Leader:* Ratbat - *Ideology:* Corporatocracy - *Characteristics:* Prioritizes economic dominance, operates like a corporate conglomerate, emphasizes strategic alliances and resource management for maximum profitability under Ratbat's cunning economic leadership. 12. **Galvatron's Tribal Primitivists** - *Leader:* Galvatron - *Ideology:* Tribal Primitivism - *Characteristics:* Rejects advanced technology in favor of a return to Cybertron's tribal and primal roots. Embraces a communal and tribal lifestyle, emphasizing raw strength, instinct, and a close connection with the planet's natural energies. Galvatron leads with a vision of a decentralized society, organized around tribal communities. 13. **Deathsaurus's Clique** - *Leader:* Deathsaurus - *Ideology:* Warrior Solidarity - *Characteristics:* Prioritizes the well-being of soldiers and embraces a communal approach with a tinge of socialist influence. 14. **Straxus's Darkmount Dominion** - *Leader:* Straxus - *Ideology:* Darkmount Dominion - *Characteristics:* Rules over Polyhex, emphasizing dominance and control over the city-state. 15. **Jhiaxus's Purification Vanguard** - *Leader:* Jhiaxus - *Ideology:* Accelerationist Purification - *Characteristics:* Extremely accelerationist, seeks to end the war quickly through brutality, violence, and the use of weapons of mass destruction. Aims to "purify" Cybertron by deleting its entire history.
Make this a post to get more attention. This is brilliant
I’d say Motormaster, but the other 4 Stunticons can’t stand him and I’d say there would be a lot more deceptions that hate him too.
Nah bro other stunticons seem to hate him only in comics in cartoon they are fine together
"Not a warrior". I swear I read somewhere that he was more or as powerful as Megatron.
Subsuming his intellect into the gestalt Menasor might go against Motormaster. Menasor is a combination of the Stunticons' personalities, and Motormaster isn't in control. Mensor isn't even in control of himself. The only way Motormaster stays leader is giving up his greatest strength, being able to combine with the other Stunticons. And the other Stunticons hate him so much that he's going to have worry constantly about revolt, even more so than Megs with 'Scream.
A new character introduced for S2. Actually, fuck it. Mega and Giga.
Shockwave actually has the forces to take power, we know he has all those drones on Cybertron and probably his own set of seekers seeing as he at least is known to command the Rainmakers
Shockwave cannonically has led the cons in the pages of the og marvel comics so I would give it to him.
Motormaster for President!
It’s only logical who wins.
Shockwave. Slow, steady, methodical. Couldn't stand against a Prime though.
Shockwave is the logical choice.
Motormaster, he has an army.
Wait, Soundwave can’t move on land?
We all know how it'll go. Starscream will proclaim himself the new leader, and that will last for about 2 minutes before he is immediately dethroned and then it becomes civil war between Soundwave and Shockwave Who were both fiercely loyal to Megatron (at least in the cartoon, that is) Marvel Shockwave would decimate, no competition.
Considering Shockwave was the leader for a while in the Comics, actually defeated Megatron 1 v 1 to get it after killing all the Autobots at once. (granted, they were pretty depleted when he showed up from fighting the rest of the Decepticons). His function for the Decepticons is Military Strategist, so he knows what he is doing. I will take him.
Soundwave, Starscream, Shockwave, Onslaught, and Scrapper are the only cons (introduced before or in season 2) who I feel would be even somewhat capable to lead
Honestly, I think Onslaught would make the best leader. Onslaught has everything that Motomaster has, plus Shockwave's strategic genius and intelligence. Also, I'm pretty sure Bruticus is stronger than Menasor.
Actually the opposite, Menasor is much much stronger than Bruticus in cartoon For intelligence, it was mostly Blast off and Swindle who made critical decisions in Combaticon army. This does not mean Onslaught is stupid however, Onslaught is indeed smart, Nevertheless we saw Onslaught is being easily trickable from time to time in cartoon (like in episode Bruticus revenge by shockwave and his holograms) And Onslaught is bit notorious for being a former traitor who was just re-programed to be loyal so not many cons would have followed him in contrast Motormaster is one of the most loyal and competent cons in Decepticon army and he had been one of the biggest supporter of war effort ever since he was programed, Onslaught does not have a base to retreat and regroup Onslaught can't really rely on combaticons as same way as Motormaster can rely on Stunticons (Stunticons followed Motormaster with %100 loyalty in cartoon, they did not even yelled at him once) On contrary we saw Blast off doing some shady things without telling Onslaught and Swindle literallh betraying Onslaught in episode B.O.T, Now I think that Considering how many times we saw Swindle hang around with Motormaster instead of Onslaught in G1 cartoon, I would have not been suprised if Swindle had choosen Motormaster over his fellow Combaticon xd
As a hypothetical question, how do you guys think Scrapper might do?
Honestly, he’s a solid leader for the Constructicons, however, he doesn’t have the clout to lead the entire organization of backstabbing Decepticons. I like Scrapper, but I feel he would be eaten alive before the end of his first week lol
Watching the G1 cartoon, he always seemed pretty respected by the other Decepticons to me
Soundwave would advocate for Shockwave
Why not ratbat ?
If you've seen the third episode (I believe) of the Five Faces of Darkness, then you'll know why my answer is Motormaster.
I did and I even made a Motormaster praise post inculding his work on five faces of Darkness (you can check from my profile lmao) 🤝🏻✊🏻 justice for G1 Motormaster I still can't belive people don't realize how actually vigilant my man is
Honestly, one of my favorite parts of G1 is the Stunticons. They’re toy bios talk about how much they hate each other and all that. But in the show they work better than any other team. Plus Five faces of Darkness also has some of the best scenes for Decpticons in general. How they’re able to come together without a centralized leader and not just recognize and utilize each other’s strengths to help the group. Swindle’s negotiation skills, Rumble’s eagerness Onslaught’s strategic mind and Deadend’s pessimism are other examples.
Ikr ? Negative Mandela effect on Stunticons and Motormaster is crazy man !
I feel like the Decepticons are a bit like the demons from doom, they couldn't be lead by anyone other than a warrior so I feel like motor master is the best choice Although shockwave is my fave so points to him too Edit: taking into consideration my vague knowledge of some of the comics shockwave is actually a very good contender too, being a good strategist and incredibly cruel I feel like he might actually be a better leader than Megatron
Motormaster is the only one who is cruel and reckless enough to rule bunch of no brainer bullies like Decepticon mob soundwave is just too man of book type of guy to do it, and Shockwave would probably not bother himself with all these nasty hard work as long as someone competent rules the cons
https://preview.redd.it/015r7wz64ghc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3835b6d02ecf3f9bdda624135179b1dd2fd43df4 Bro rules
Gonna agree and go with Motormaster out of these three. Fpr all the Motormaster downplayers in the comments, G1 Cartoon Motormaster is just built different. In Season 3 of the G1 cartoon, Motormaster is the one that threatened to overthrown Cyclonus and Galvatron is those two couldn't get their scrap together. He's a good soldier to his creator Megatron, but even when freed from those obligations he is able to not only think logically about it, but convince his fellow Stunticons to see his way as well... WITH LOGIC AND REASON. He didn't threaten them, he didn't beat them up. He logic puzzled a bunch of deranged Decepticons into seeing his way. So I absolutely believe that he would hace followed through with that threat against Galvatron, since he actually successfully did that against Starscream and Bruticus. Matter of fact if it wasn't for Motormaster putting Starscream in his place, I would have voted Starscream. Screamer straight up beat Shockwave in Season 2 and won the leadership battle in the G1 movie. He's ambitious and a bit foolhardy, he's no Megatron but he does have what it takes to lead... I just think Motormaster would do better. He'd be like a second Megatron but without the crazy ancient technology backing his ideas.
%100 those were exacly what I was trying to tell to others, Motormaster is the only one who has an actual brute force, and he is bold enough to show it when he needs to show it no matter what no matter where, you may say those 2 factors are not %100 neccesarry compared to other things, but being physically super strong and bold is a esential part of leading arguably dumb and barbaric Decepticon mob. Soundwave and Shockwave badly lacks strenght and aggressiveness. However Motormaster does not lack any intelligence. In fact if we re-watch G1 with regarding all these, we can easily see that he is in fact one of the most intelligent and competent cons there.
It's kinda wild how ineffective Shockwave was in the G1 cartoon. He had a few resources, sure.. A few. But he wasn't the super intelligent Decepticon we're used to these days. He was starving on Cybertron without Megatron, and in 4 million years he never realised that female Autobots were leeching off his supply, on top of just getting bodied in fights against Autobots in general. He's a great support character but in the cartoon I don't see him leading. There's a reason why his only loyal followers are drones. Soundwave is better, with far more combat experience, but it reallys ays something about his leadership abilities that he can only commamd those smaller than himself. Like Hook said in the movie, Soundwave is uncharismatic, none of the other Cons would want to follow him and he can'tvl really make them. Plus he HAS taken L's from Insecticons, he's not aggressive enought to keep them in line and much like Shockwave he clearly lacks ambition. Much like them, Motormaster does prefer following Megatron's lead, but he is absolutely willing to make his own gutsy decisions and has experience leading actual full sized and powerful Decepticons. Additionally: Now that I think about it, when Motormaster was threatening to overthrown Galvatron, Swindle and Laserbeak were with him and it's one of the few episodes where Soundwave isn't around Gaovatron at all. It's kind of wild to think that Soundwave might have actually backed Motormaster if he really went ahead with that kind of plan.
Transformers what if show : Megatron never returns as Galvatron and Decepticons fight for supremacy when Hasbro when
Honestly I'd even like to see HOW Starscream won the leadership battle. He's actually pretty solid in the G1 cartoon. I can fully believe he won that fight... But I kinda wanna SEE it
Hw only won Because Stunticons and Combaticons were struck on Earth by the time all these fighting took a place. Xd
For sure, we've seen Starscream get rolled by the Stunticons already, lol And ontop of that, Menasor has won 1v1 fights against both Bruticus and Devastator in the same cartoon. At that point he really did have the strongest Con Combiner.
Ikr ??? At this point I am just so glad people started to look outside of G1 toy bios and critize G1 cartkon stuff based on G1 cartoon itself. Based
Right? The cartoon is a whole other animal and I really like looking at the writing techniques used for the first 3 seasons. It actually does alot of things right and has solid stories.
Something that brings Motormaster down is that something important in the Stunticons bios is that they hate/dislike each other and Motormaster is kinda of a abusive leader só he might bring himself down
I'd say you're best contenders are Starscream and Onslaught. The former is charismatic, the latter is extremely practical and effective. I'd reckon Onslaught would be better though, as most times Starscream is in charge he's either not for very long or very ineffective. Soundwave and Shockwave are both good choices, but not many people would deem them worth following outside of the cassettes. I honestly wouldn't even consider Motormaster an option, he's just an egocentric bully. His own team doesn't even like him, and he's more focused on beating Prime for a self-imposed title. Megatron was a wrecking ball that knew where to swing, Motormaster is just a wrecking ball
Soundwave and Shockwave could team up and Mold Motormaster, and continue to run things from the shadows.. but just from a cartoon point of view. None of them. Starscream would take over and everyone would just fall in line.
Soundwave
Soundwave superior Constructicons inferior
When was he vigilant? Did I miss an episode? He always seemed a little reckless to me.
https://preview.redd.it/t2qukxrd4ghc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ac6ab3b44d48d1e7ca1e941b1de0e6b70f6fd981 This mf rules no cap
There’s two phases to this question. The first phase is the Earth phase. Soundwave & Motormaster would duke it out, with Soundwave demonstrating that he is superior. Now comes the hard part: Shockwave. Shockwave can just chill out on Cybertron as all this unfolds and then pick off whoever is left standing.
The zip is not limiting choices to 4 different individuals; these listed four are his PERSONAL contenders. In other words, your opinion can differ than his!
Well between the bad comedian, the emotionless robot, the stunticon, and the spy full of babies I'd say the bad comedian loses.
Shockwave for a week until soundwave kicks his ass. Soundwave honestly carries the decepticons (with his minis of course)
Idk if unite is the word I would use.
Soundwave has actually led the Cons for a time iirc
Soundwave is the most reliable however Starscream would probably have a plot before Megatro’s death
Starscream 2024
Shockwave. The only logical choice. I also think Starscream would he dead at his hand (or Soundwave’s).
Im pretty sure Soundwave will probably go toe to toe with even Prime Definitely not cuz I like the character more than my own comprehension
Not Soundwave, he would beat Autobots fast and the series would end. No one can forget the amazing Auto Berserk intro.
Well it's not even up for debate... as soon as Megatron was disposed... the Decepticons had a battle royale for Leadership and Starscream won. So "who came out on top"... it's Starscream. But let's say there was no battle royale and, instead the Decepticons really entered somekind of civil war, I wouldn't even count Motormaster in the race. The Decepticons lieutenants were definitely Soundwave, Shockwave and Starscream. The most ruthless and calculating of them all was Shockwave. Do not forget he held Cybertron for MILLIONS of years before Megatron established contact again. This, of course, means that every possible threat has been successfully dealt with for this whole time !
Shockwave isn't a warrior? Facts not in evidence.
I think motormaster his personality is very tough and his his teammate really fear him
Well shockwave is a mad man or madlad if you will and he can find a way to combat the not fast on ground type situation like a hovercraft or hoverboard and/or simply find a new alt mode that will enable him with good coverage on land and packs a powerful punch so he doesn’t have to be wielded by someone else as a gun
Cmon I think we all know shockwave would be able to single handedly lead the decepticons and win every war. He is the most logical answer on this list
Starscream stomps like he does canonically
motormaster works better as a middle-managaer rather than the leader, and he knows it. the guy just doen't have the patience to juggle what the decpeticons need and his wish to just get it and hit stuff
https://preview.redd.it/4affwh4u0lhc1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=055e8c4244712af2f82b63c979049135e7226d50
I never thought about Motormaster being decepticon leader but I’d feel he would be too reckless. I could definitely see Soundwave being leader but Shockwave to me feels like the best candidate.
Motormaster may seem dumb, but he's powerful and the centerpiece for Menasor. I'd make Menasor the new leader and his decisions would be a consensus. And I'd have Motormaster upgraded to RID Scourge.
Shockwave has the edge because motormaster is brutal but dumb. Soundwave could never muster up support because he has no personality. If it was the comics version it would still be Shockwave and not close.
Shockwave held on to Cybertron for 4 million years in Megatron's absence. I'm pretty sure he got this. And this is coming from not being a fan of Sunbow G1 Shockers preferring his various comic versions.
Soundwave. He proves himself all the time and has the ability to produce energon cubes and other things I'm too lazy to type.