Transformers: Decepticon Dominion
Theme Files

Mission Statement

Decepticon Dominion Mush breaks new ground with the concept of a single-faction Transformer Mush. Why have a TF Mush with only a single faction? Doesn't this cancel out the necessary drama and conflict that's so inherent to the TF mythology? Hardly. Decepticon interactions among themselves are every bit as fascinating, perhaps more so, than the usual Decepticon/Autobot conflict - because there's forever a fine balance between the sense of team loyalty and the continued drive to better oneself. There's tremendous interpersonal RP possibility, and even greater opportunity on a larger scale. A one-faction Mush eliminates the need to maintain an artificially static environment between two sides, where neither can truly advance, let alone triumph. A one-faction Mush allows a continued sense of progress, a steady change, a history that builds upon itself. In the context of that theme, TFDD is committed to a non-restrictive and respectful environment for its players, and seeks to attract dedicated roleplayers who would like to be part of the adventure.

Theme

Decepticon Dominion plays out a sweeping tale of history, starting from familiar ground on mid-1980's Earth and continuing beyond all usual limits, with much room along the way for innovation and exploration. This universe is firmly grounded in the pre-Movie cartoons, and characterizations are true to those given on the show. Excellent characters from other eras and universes are scheduled to be added as needed, to present the best possible mix of the greatest of the Decepticons, all brought together in one place. Consider the TFDD universe to be divided into two major sub-themes that progressively lead into one another: pre-Autobot-defeat, and post-Autobot-defeat. What would the Decepticons do after vanquishing their long-time enemies? The universe itself lies open.

Origin

Four billion years ago on the planet Cybertron, life existed - but not life as we know it. A billion years earlier, coalescing out of the fiery plasma of a proto-solar system, a star glowed to life and a single planet condensed into a core of heavy metals and rare elements, a semi-solid state that precipitated metallic crystals upon cooling, which aggregated and began to form structure. In time a vast silvery filamentous network of layered neurocircuitry wavered in the shallow seas of a nutrient solution that would, in the unimaginably distant future, someday be called Energon. The product of vast millennia of metal crystalline precipitation, the aggregates began at some point to replicate themselves, forming floating mats of interlinked microstructure. The combination of existing elements, activated by radiation from the sun and the rhythmic pulses of a nearby neutron star, like a heartbeat in the darkness, and the flux of ions across metal filaments, at some point began to generate electric impulses; these in turn disrupted the orderly replication of the crystals out of solution, inducing mutations and local unevenness of structure.

What are the indicators of life? Growth, reproduction, use of nutrients. By all criteria, the growing masses of filaments were alive. At what point does life give rise to consciousness? It may have haunted the clustered nodules of neurofilaments like a fleeting shadow, drawing in upon itself with increased certainty, until a self-awareness developed in various nooks and corners -- until a free-flowing individuality developed -- until minds proliferated in the endless oceans of gleaming silver strands. Such was the case over vast stretches of time, and these mental beings, poised on the flimsiest of physical forms, constructed a sort of culture amongst themselves, too alien for most creatures to comprehend. They grew and drew upon the resources around them, the older layers solidifying and dying off like layers of coral, adding shells upon shells to the surface of the planet, stretching upward toward the sun. But the nutrient ocean that sustained them was being drawn dry by the ever-increasing growth, and finally it was realized by the minds collectively that they would have to adapt to a dry land environment in some manner, or perish.

Growth now directed itself with conscious effort -- crude appendages were grown, with which to further manipulate the environment, and more efficient structures were constructed; finally semi-mobile forms appeared, which were directed toward independence of the nutrient ocean. Not all of them made it. But for those who survived, the jump to the land was a turning point after which evolution progressed in rapid bounds. It was found that the initially crude and awkward physical forms could be built to suit individual tasks. For the sake of manipulating objects and doing delicate work, a bipedal, vaguely humanoid form came to be favored, though there were other designs for other purposes as well. How many of those designs fled to the sublayers of the planet, unable to tolerate the sunlight, and how many minds remained hidden in neurofilaments locked somewhere deep within the core, will perhaps never be known.

Those who conquered the surface, however, were inventive in their tasks, translating their former mental society into a physical one with the construction of shelters, social interactions, new means of reproducing themselves. It was found that individuals could contribute part of their life-essence to a newly-constructed mind, and that these life-essences could be combined from any number of donors. It was also found that natural receptacles for bits of life-essence were left over from the planet's former stages, and these became the core of creation factories where new life was infused into prepared bodies. Vector Sigma is such a creation factory core, perhaps the last functional one, with numerous others having been accessible throughout Cybertron's history.

Memory of the essentially bodiless, purely mental existence of their ancestors faded rapidly as the Cybertronians had to contend with the physical structure of the world around them - to construct shelter, to harvest energon, to seek alternate fuel sources. The instantaneous communication of the past, something close to a collective mind, was replaced by the isolation of individual minds housed in individual bodies, in which they were forever separated from one another. Only a few individuals here and there retained the ability to pick up the electromagnetic impulses of another's mind, but these telepaths were rare, and growing rarer with each successive generation. The past was falling behind, some of its mysteries destined to remain forever unexplained. More and more, the Cybertronians were able to consciously direct their own evolution - a privilege that is decidedly rare in the universe - and they were looking to the future.

History

Once Cybertron's native life-forms had made their leap to the land, different societies began to develop on different parts of the planet. As technology developed and the different cultures were brought into contact with each other, smaller groups eventually merged or were swallowed by larger ones, and those that could not adapt themselves were driven extinct. Eventually, only two dominant philosophies remained. One group sought to conserve resources and govern by a system of laws and democracy. The other group sought to use the available resources to expand their reach and govern with a hierarchical pack system. Thus the seeds of the Decepticon/Autobot conflict were sown early, even before the days of transformation.

Somewhere along the way as the conflicts intensified, the natural inventiveness of the Cybertronians which had guided their own evolution resulted in such innovations as the transformation process. Even here, differences were apparent between the two factions according to their natural tendencies. The Decepticons focused on the sky, and those forms which would allow expansion. The Autobots focused on ground-based forms that consumed less fuel and were designed more toward living life conservatively in a limited area. Just as the original Cybertronian mobile life-forms had been crude and awkward, so the original alt modes were limited and inefficient. However, a critical point had been crossed, and development proceeded rapidly. The two factions drifted ever farther apart in their technology as well as their worldviews, essentially resulting in two distinguishable subspecies of Cybertronians, who were by now calling themselves Transformers.

The Cybertronians were still in the most primitive stages of building their civilizations and seeking to understand their universe, when visitors from the stars arrived. These partly organic beings sensed a great potential in the totally mechanical life-forms. Being arms dealers, instigators, feeders off of the wars of other worlds, they saw in the Cybertronians ready-made soldiers to sell to the rest of the universe. Using the rampant superstitions of the time to their advantage, they proclaimed themselves gods as they descended and were lavishly welcomed as the long-lost creators of Cybertron - only to quickly enslave the populace. Long millennia, these slave masters held sway over Cybertron. Entire generations came to believe they had indeed been created by these beings and owed them their existence, miserable though it was. Decepticons and Autobots both were utilized according to their natural inclinations. The warrior Decepticons were sold to foreign powers, and the Autobots were used as domestics and builders to make life easy for their masters.

But not everyone was willing to accept slavery without question. Putting aside their previous quarrel in the face of a common enemy, the two factions worked in secret to uncover the truth about the slavers, and how to defeat them. The Autobots, being domestic servants, were able to secure the access codes needed to shut down weaponry and defenses, and neutralize the Guardian Robots who were used to keep the slaves in line. The Decepticons mustered a full-scale attack on the main city as soon as the shields were down, and succeeded in killing many of the slavers. The survivors were forced to retreat in a single starship, leaving behind many pieces of technology alien to the Cybertronians.

With the slavers driven away, life resumed - that is, the old ideological conflict resumed, and with a more lethal edge than before. Having been enslaved once, the Decepticons felt that the best way to insure it would never happen again was to make themselves and Cybertron strong, to conquer before they were conquered, to rule before they were ruled. They began to direct their resources into ever-increased technology and weaponry. The Autobots, by contrast, complacently sat back and enjoyed what they called a "golden age". They felt that their place was on Cybertron, that the answer to aggressive alien races was not to go out and meet them head-on, but to avoid them altogether. The Autobots sought to impose their isolationist policies on the Decepticons, and thus the conflict surged anew. A moral schism had developed whereby each side considered the ideology of the other to be the surest route to extinction. Each side began to feel justified in using the most cruel and ruthless military tactics against the other in the name of "the greater good."

During the long series of wars tthat followed, many historical records were lost, and verbal accounts from long ago became mythologized, re-interpreted, and shaped to suit the philosophy of each faction. The knowledge of the slavers from the stars haunted the collective memory of each side, although direct records had long since been lost or destroyed. Some of the artifacts left behind in the slavers' hasty retreat became "sacred relics" to the more superstitious-minded Autobots, who eventually created their own myths and legends about these alien pieces of technology. A Primus Cult arose as a reconstituted story of a past Autobot commander named Primus who in the course of re-telling became deified into a god. A Unicron Cult, likewise, was built up around the legends carried by the slavers, of a planet-devourer who, in the minds of the superstitious, became a terrible and avenging god of destruction; and so any number of other sub-cults and irrational belief systems flourished.

Of the two Transformer subspecies, it was the Decepticons who did not linger long in these dark ages, who by their nature tended to cast off such shackles and rely on their own experience of the world, rather than on ancient tales. The Autobots, by contrast, tended to cling to such tales as "the devine truth," and built a great deal of their culture around them. Another insurmountable division between the ways of the Autobots and the ways of the Decepticons had been established. It soon became apparent that only one subspecies was going to be able to survive in the same realm, under competition for the same limited resources.

The tides of power shifted continuously. Leaders on both sides arose, led their armies to grand achievements, and vanished into the murky shadows of history. Times of "peace" were temporary facades at best, "peace" being maintained by the ruthless iron control of one side over the other, until the oppressed rose up again and shifted the balance. Eras of exploration, mostly by Decepticons but also in limited instances by Autobots, resulted in colonies of Transformers established off-planet here and there throughout the galaxy - most of which were eventually recalled by the leadership, though some perished under local conditions, vanished without a trace, or were simply forgotten ... perhaps a few are still out there. Closer to home, the ceaseless wars were rapidly draining the remaining energy and raw material from Cybertron, each side blaming the other for refusing to yield to its "obvious solutions." Leadership methods became repetitive and stale, the same battles fought and won and lost, the same pieces of territory falling first under the control of one side, then the other.

It took the innovation of a fresh approach to shake the course of history out of its rut; it took an upstart warlord named Megatron, a former gladiator in the State Games, who deposed the Decepticon commander of his day and brought new creativity and passion to the Decepticon leadership. It seemed somehow appropriate that he consolidated his power in the wake of a planet-wide ecological catastrophe - the destruction of Cybertron's sun itself. Once again, each faction loudly blamed the other, while only a few individuals knew what had really occurred - but Megatron, true to his nature, turned disaster into opportunity, and brought the rest of the squabbling Decepticon warlords under his banner.

It was some time later that the Autobot leader Optimus Prime organized a mission in search of off-planet energy sources, and Megatron quickly gathered his best warriors to follow. He would allow Prime to lead them to the fuel source the Autobots had apparently detected, ambush them, kill the Autobot leadership, take the fuel for himself, and return victorious to Cybertron. Little did Megatron suspect that it would be another four million years before he was to see his homeworld again - that he would crash on a distant planet and lie dormant until revived by the rumblings of a volcano and a loyal warrior whose first thought upon regaining consciousness was for his leader. Optimus Prime and the Autobots, too, were not beyond reactivation, and so the conflict continued on Earth....

Creation

Where do new Transformers come from? One of the unique things about the species is that there are a number of ways of generating new life. In previous generations, the most common was the "factory" method whereby newly-built bodies were infused with life by a creation factory such as Vector Sigma, which incubates and stores inside itself vast numbers of personality engrams that can be combined in an almost infinite number of ways. The resulting robots, while lacking personal life experience, are psychologically and emotionally adults and are ready to go about their business. At one time, a fair number of these creation factories existed, but with time most were destroyed or lost, and now only Vector Sigma remains as the commonly-known, accessible source of this manner of providing life.

In recent generations, due to the inaccessibility of the creation factories, the "private creation" method became common, whereby two or more Transformers get together to infuse their life-energy into the body of a newly-built robot. This is a more complicated process, and requires the assistance of a technician who is skilled specifically in such matters. The resulting life is emotionally a child who must learn and experience and grow psychologically and sometimes physically (by transferring the consciousness into a larger, more powerful form after it's learned to handle itself in a smaller one). This private creation method generally works best when there is at least one male and one female among the creators, in order to generate a stable personality. Very rare individuals can also give life to emotionally balanced offspring alone. Additionally there are a few esoteric methods that are rarely used.

Domains

Which domain on Cybertron does your character come from? What domain lord do you serve and why? Currently the Decepticon-held parts of Cybertron are divided up into four realms, each under a different ruler:

Polyhex - Shockwave's Domain

Polyhex is the capital of the Decepticon Empire. Currently governed by Shockwave in Megatron's absence, Polyhex is the centre of the Decepticon Militarized Zone and the most powerful region, in terms of influence and resources. Other regional warlords are required to send resources and tribute to Polyhex. This region attracts the 'movers and shakers' of the Decepticon Empire and those who have high ambitions in the Decepticon hierarchy.

Valckasta - Thunderwing's Domain

Thunderwing rules over a small but historically important region, Valackasta province, which is an austere place famed for its graceful architecture and its prestigious officers' academy. Valackasta focuses on storing and maintaining information and its sights include the War Museum, the Hall of Records and the unique Galaxy Holograph Room. Scholars and scientists with a historical bent are likely to be trained in Valackasta and officers who are trained here have a certain social prestige to them.

The Grinder and the Undercity - Straxus' Domain

The Grinder is the infamous Decepticon bootcamp, ruled with an iron fist by Straxus who turns quivering recruits into metal-spitting Decepticon troopers. The Grinder is located in the Undercity, an important administrative area for its region. Life here is harsh and unpleasant, and the Grinder can break soldiers as well as make them.

Tyrian - Colossus' Domain

Colossus rules over the domain of Tyrian, a rough frontier territory on the edges of the Decepticon Militarized Zone. Recruits from Tyrian are typified by their independent streak and are taught to act on their feet. And those recruits who think they've learned everything at the Academy find they're treated like greenhorns if they have the misfortune to be stationed at Tyrian. As Tyrian is isolated from the other provinces, Colossus has developed his own way of doing things and occasionally clashes with the other domain lords over matters of procedure and protocol.

Infighting

Given the aggressive warrior nature of the Decepticons, some conflict among the troops is to be expected. However, these are most definitely not anything like their conflicts with an enemy. The Decepticons will often test each other in the manner of a wolf pack, attacking without the intent to cause serious harm. This has the overall goal of keeping each member sharp and alert for real conflicts. Sometimes this will happen in planned sparring sessions and other times one Decepticon will surprise another. Generally this sort of activity is not taken seriously by the characters, and players should be careful not to overreact. It should be noted also that players should not be taken by surprise even if their characters are. When RPing such a scenario, players should communicate and keep the concept of consensual RP in mind.

Aside from sparring, characters might also find themselves contending for recognition or the same position. Each Decepticon wishes to advance in the ranks and improve themselves and the team. The only way to accomplish this is to prove you're the best Con for the job. However this is competition between teammates and NOT backstabbing or treason. Players are free to RP out this competition, provided it's consensual and doesn't go too far. Players should keep in mind the overall goal is the advancement of the team. Yes, one character could let the Autobots gain a major victory and blame it on one of his fellow Decepticons. But that would mean harming the team as a whole, and personal ambition doesn't justify that.

A Decepticon would resort to seriously injuring or killing a teammate only if he or she was causing serious harm to the team as a whole. Being a weak or ineffectual leader certainly causes harm to the whole and leaves the team more vulnerable to harm from the enemy. So sometimes honor duels or assassinations take place. However, most of the time RPing this out in MUSH terms can be fairly tricky. Generally, such things would require a TP and the admin should be consulted.

Note - Starscream is a character worth mentioning here because he's so often shown attempting to overthrow Megatron and assume command. Starscream is noteworthy exactly because he is such an exception to the general rule. But even in Starscream's case he never intended to cause harm to the Decepticons. He simply thought the team would benefit from his leadership and it galled him that Megatron wasn't doing things the way he thought they should be done. Starscream still knew the Autobots were the enemy and still believed in the Decepticon ideals. He just didn't quite know when to draw the line. Characters acting like Starscream should be few and far between.

Technoloy

The General State of TF Technology

Throughout the history of Cybertron, many amazing discoveries have been made in the field of science. And even though much knowlege has been lost, most of this advanced science and technology has been retained or rediscovered. However, virtually all of Cybertron's industrial capacity has been destroyed in the various conflicts. So even though the theories and manufacturing techniques have been retained in most cases, the resources don't currently exist to produce most of the advanced weaponry and devices some individual Decepticons and Autobots possess. Most of the specialized devices and weaponry that currently exist are relics of times past, when resources where more readily availble. In addition, some special weapons or powers such as null rays, teleportation circuits, and cloaking shields depend on the mental ability of the individual robot. Special circuits enable the Transformer to utilize these powers, but the ability itself comes from the laser core (the Transformer equivilant of the brain) of the individual.

Subspace

One of the most advantageous advances in technology was the discovery of subspace. By producing an energy field, matter can be "phased" or "shunted" from normal space to subspace. This allows for convenient storage of all manner of items, including ammunition and ordinance. However, energon cannot travel to and from subspace. As a result, any weapons or devices that enter subspace must go in "dry", and be fueled when they return to normal space. Items shunted to subspace do not return until an energy field is produced that compliments the field that sent them to subspace to begin with. So in effect, only the individual who shunts an object can retrieve it. Also, it's standard practice to include simple scrambling circuitry in any battlefield item that prevents that item from being shunted to subspace without a specfic kind of field. This means no opponent can shunt items that their enemies possess to subspace. Subspace circuitry is not complicated to manufacture, and is standard issue for all Decepticon troops.

Size Changing

Some Transformers have the ability to alter their size while transforming, either to a limited degree or to an extreme degree. The limited size changes are the result of complex restructuring during the process of transforming. Motormaster is a good example of this. In truck mode, he and Optimus Prime are approximately the same size. Yet they are also approximately the same size in robot mode, despite the fact that Motormaster incorporates his trailer in robot mode, whereas Prime does not. The reason for this is that Motormaster's trailer is almost entirely empty space. The trailer itself doesn't add much to his size when it folds up compactly in robot mode. Each transformation might have hundreds of small pieces all folding or sliding into different positions. Some parts can even go to or come from subspace during this process. Thus, some size changing is possible simply from the process of transforming. A good visual of this kind of complex transforming can be seen in Transformers the Movie when Unicron transforms.

More dramatic size changes, such as Soundwave shrinking down to the size of a human microcassette player, are accomplished by actually altering the atoms of the robot. The atoms are enlarged or shrunk from normal size, and can be kept in the altered state for varying lengths of time. Eventually however, the atoms will return to normal size. It is far easier to shrink objects down than to enlarge them. Also, simply being larger does not grant increased strength or invulnerability, so it makes little sense to enlarge the enemy's target while gaining no advantages yourself. Size changing technology is one of the most difficult pieces of Cybertronian technology to manufacture, most particularly in small enough form to fit inside a Cybertronian. Any size- changing circuitry that currently exists is a relic.

Flying

Flight by Cybertronians can be accomplished by three methods. The first is by standard propellent reaction to produce thrust, such as jet engines and rockets. The second is by mechanical lift, such as propellers and rotors. The third is by gravitational manipulation, which is what all Decepticons use to fly in robot mode. Since it uses no propellent, this method of flying is virtually silent and very energy efficient. However, the top speed of this form of flight is only 200 miles per hour in an atmosphere for an average Decepticon.

The Decepticons invented the gravitational manipulation devices that allow them to fly in robot mode, and guard this technology very carefully. Flying circuits are moderately difficult to manufacture, but are considered worth the cost, and are standard equipment for Decepticon troops.

Cybertronian Weapons

Decepticon (and Autobot) weapons come in many different varieties and utilize many different distinct technologies. By far the most common is the laser, which almost every Transformer carries in one form or another. A short burst of coherent light, the laser beam instantly vaporizes whatever material it comes in contact with. Being far more powerful than the simple cutting lasers that exist on Earth, Cybertronian lasers turn solid matter to gas and plasma so rapidly that a small explosion results from the expanding material. Given the nature of Cybertronian armor (see below), it's often more effective to shoot the ground directly in front of an opponent and letting the resulting explosion knock him or her to the ground. This tactic has proven most effective on rocky terrain. Other Cybertronian weapons include ballistic devices such as guns and artillery, missiles, electric bolts, incendiary devices, and plasma projectors. There are also more exotic weapons such as null rays, energy nets, sonic projectors, and so on. Virtually all weapons used by Cybertronians have one element in common - the power for the weapon is supplied by the user. The energy is channeled through the hands to the handle of the weapon. This allows for weapons to be stored in subspace since they have no internal energon. It also prevents an enemy from gaining free ammunition from captured weapons.

Cybertronian Armor

The armor plating that protects Cybertronians is extremely sturdy, but the metal itself is only part of the reason. Special internal circuitry creates an energy field (called an integrity field) that infuses the metal, granting it increased stability and resistance to deformation and disintegration. Thus, the armor of a Cybertronian with a full power integrity field is able to withstand a direct hit without apparent damage. The field drains energon each time it absorbs an attack, so it can rapidly exhaust a combatant's energy reserves. The quality of metal is vital to the performance of the integrity field. The best armor is specially tempered to gain maximum benefit of the integrity field for the least energon. However, even Earth metal can be used in an emergency. Integrity field circuits are not difficult to manufacture and are standard equipment for Decepticon troops.

Laser Cores and Reprogramming

Cybertronian laser cores are approximately equivalent to the human brain. A laser core is a complex neural network, similar to a crystal in appearence. All important cognitive functions occur here, and the personality of the being resides here. Without a laser core, a Transformer is a non-living collection of parts. The laser core is also inherently immune from tampering. It is not possible to alter or "reprogram" the laser core without destroying it, in whole or in part. However, many Cybertronians use auxillery microchips of one kind or another to agument their mental processess. Memory enhancement is the most common, with vast amounts of data being stored in chips outside the laser core, ready for retrivel. These and other external microchips can be reprogrammed or altered. In addition, it is possible to bypass the laser core and remotely control the body of a Transformer. However, this can only be done for a short time before the individual's self-repair system detects the tampering, destroys the invading technology, and restores control to the laser core. Both of these methods of altering the behavior of another are imperfect, and in general it is very easy to tell something is wrong with the individual.

Nuclear Power

Strangely enough, for all the advanced technology possessed by the Transformers, they do not have nuclear power. This is because of a natural inhibitor field created by energon itself and Cybertronian technology which prevents both fission chain reactions and fusion from occuring. As a result, any nuclear reaction will cease functioning when a Transformer or energon comes within a certain distance. This means Cybertronians are unable to take advantage of nuclear power, but it also means nuclear weapons are useless against them.

Note - Megatron's arm cannon is called a fusion cannon. However, it is not powered by nuclear fusion, the process of fusing together hydrogen atoms which powers stars. Megatron's cannon takes an ordinary laser beam and enfuses it with tiny amounts of plasma. This fusion accelerates the plasma to almost the speed of light, which releases a tremendous amount of energy upon impact. Megatron can also enfuse his cannon blast with anti-matter, and create an even more powerful blast. However, this process is a terrible strain on him.

Nanites and Micro-Tech

Cybertronians currently do not possess any type of nanotechnology. Given that Transformers are made of circuits, cables, and other large parts, a device the size of a biological cell would not directly help or harm them. Integrity fields would also prevent nano-scale devices from having any effect at all, despite how many there were (see the section on cybertronian armor). In addition, the housekeeping units inside Transformers would quickly eliminate any potential micro-scale threat. So while it iis possible for nannites to be constructed, they would have no useful functions, and devices of this scale are largely ignored by Cybertronian scientists.

Encryption and Communication Techniques

The communication techniques of the Cybertronians are very sophisticated, allowing them to communicate in real time even over interstellar distances. Cybertronian scientists also long ago discovered methods of cracking any sort of mathmatical-based encryption. Thus, neither side bothers to encrypt their transmissions, relying instead on other methods to prevent easedropping. Direct laser links, which are very difficult to intercept, are the communication technique of choice in the field.