Trypticon is an ancient being from the distant past ("from the second Cybertron" according to him... whatever that's supposed to mean), who survived the eons mostly because he's too large for erosion and entropy to whittle away. When the Decepticons discovered him, they recruited the massive machine to be Lord Megatron's base of operations -- surely if time itself couldn’t kill him then the Autobots won’t stand a chance.
Trypticon doesn't get to transform and move about on his own volition much anymore, a fact he doesn't terribly mind. The modern age is horribly confusing, this organic alien world even more so, energon levels are always woefully low, his hosts have modified his form so much he doesn't quite know what is what anymore -- and he's far more interested in reading the history files to see what he’s missed, anyways. Although sometimes the records seem... confused...
Trypticon turns into the White House -- well, an oversized copy to accommodate 30-foot robots, and only his upper body, the rest being a jumble of secret bunkers, tunnels, and whatever remains of his prior spaceship mode. A rough estimate of his size would be about 800 feet tall and 1500 feet from nose to tail! Needless to say his replacing the original building would be about as subtle as Megatron stealing the Lincoln Memorial's seat.
HOT TAKE: Decepticons take over DC! Optimus tries to rally humanity to take the capital back but is dismayed to find many are either apathetic or actually happy about the new rulers...
It occurred to me that the Liege-Maximo-loyalist Vigilem would make more sense as the duplicitous President Megatron's HQ than ol' Trypticon (even if dinos are more fun), so to make up for it here’s Vigilem as the US Capitol Building.
... and a purple griffin as the Watergate complex. Why not?
Ratbat
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Decepticon society is a culture of fear and paranoia, of assuming everyone and anything could be an Autobot in disguise. To help keep spirits up, Ratbat offers many wonderful consumer goods: feel-good movies with simple plots (there'll be a dozen sequels and five spinoffs!), new alternate modes to change into (try a new form every year!), exotic planets to visit (travel to Rigels I - VI and Rigel VII is free!), plastic action figures (collect them all!), soma tablets in every flavor imaginable (a gramme in time saves nine!), and much much more! All proceeds go to better the Decepticon cause, namely by allowing Ratbat to offer even more exciting product.
Ratbat absolutely floods the populace with catchy and provacative advertising, even going so far as to modify his wing membranes to display them. Occasionally, by necessity only, Decepticon High Command will assume temporary control of all the monitors and screens (it's far easier to do this than set up their own) to bring important messages and updates... and to make sure Ratbat hasn't completely blotted out the state of anxiety they've been cultivating.
Decepti-Drones
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Soundwave has made use of innumerable underlings in his endless quest to control information. Their primary function is to gather, process, and store intel of every imaginable kind, both on the enemy and on fellow Decepticons (a loyal Decepticon has no secrets!). Every iota of raw data is invaluable, regardless of how mundane it may seem. As such, these lackeys will sacrifice their own minds and bodies to hold more, and more, and more, until they're little more than barely-living memory cards. But even then one bot can only hold so much…
Prior to their ultimate fate, these Decepticons are often tasked with properly maintaining the collective information. Sometimes that requires creating helpful graphs to simplify complex social issues, remastering damaged recordings (Rumble does a perfect impression of Megatron, for those rare instances when a bit too much static interferes), discarding offensive works that do not fit with modern sensibilities, or just simply asking [citation needed] on dubious claims. Although largely thankless, it is a vital role that lets the Decepticon populace know what it needs to know.
King Galvatron
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Galvatron is a madman, so completely and utterly out of his mind it's a marvel he functions at all. He rambles on about unicorns, break into a fit of laughter mid-sentance, argue with his scepter, names inanimate objects "Meello", and generally makes frightfully little sense. On top of this, Galvatron presumes himself to be Decepticon Leader, expecting everyone (Autobots and humans included!) to follow his orders -- and as one might expect, said orders are bafflingly ridiculous, making sense to no one but Galvatron himself. If even that.
Some conspiracy theorists would have you believe that Galvatron is none other than Megatron! They claim that our Leader had met with a terrible fate and is now a slave to an evil all-consuming god from beyond the stars, and that this "truth" is being hidden from the public by Decepticon Command for just-as-nefarious reasons. Naturally, this is preposterous. All loyal Decepticons can see Megatron is alive and well thanks to his daily televised speeches or his frequent motorcade travels; truly fortunate Decepticons might even have had the privilege to see Megatron in battle alongside Starscream. All these Autobot-sympathizers prove is that they are even crazier than Galvatron.
Sideways is an entertainer for both Autobots and Decepticons, and peppers his magic acts and daredevil feats with plenty of barbs aimed at whoever the current audience is at odds with. Yes, they are all just as awful as you think, unlike you lovely folks, oh ho ho.
Off the stage Sideways avoids both factions, but seems to have struck something of a companionship with the mad Galvatron. Many suspect he's just taking advantage of the poor confused bot, but perhaps the artiste sees something of himself within the deluded 'king' abandoned by everyone else...
Optimus Prime
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Optimus Prime is the supreme leader of the Autobots, a position he achieved not because he won the hearts of the people but because he happens to hold a pagan trinket – the so-called Matrix of Leadership – which he claimed from the previous leader upon their unexpected death. Upon assuming command, Optimus has turned his back on mother Cybertron to adopt Earth as a new homeworld, somehow believing the lives of those small alien organics are worth more than his own kind. Whether the rest of the Autobots agree with him or not is meaningless; Optimus alone holds complete control over everything thanks to his mythical 'Cog of Command.' Ironic for one that claims to fight for freedom.
While nearly all Transformers have taken up alternate modes based upon human constructs, Decepticons adopt forms that reflect their personality and function while the Autobots universally hide their true selves behind common civilian automobiles. Optimus Prime himself has tailored his disguise to appeal to the average working man, to fool humanity into thinking he is anything less than an invading warlord.
Truly, we are being deceived.
The evil Optimus Prime enslaved the poor bestial Roller to haul his lazy butt everywhere. Some even say Prime had his pet lobotomized to make it more compliant with his twisted desires. So much for "freedom is the right for all sentient beings."
Matrix of Leadership
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A legendary artifact from the beginning of the Transformers' history (and likely even from before that), the Matrix of Leadership –as the name implies– marks an individual as the Leader of the Autobots, and is traditionally worn inside the chest next to the Spark. More than just a symbol, the Matrix strives to create the idealized leader, altering the very fabric of the body and mind of its hosts into what it perceives to be perfection. Initially it tried to simply re-create its original bearer, but after far too many repeated heroic sacrifices it changed tactics. Continuously absorbing the memories of all who possessed it (worthy or not), and paying close attention to how each bearer ultimately fails, the Matrix meticulously sifts out the best traits to craft an even better savior than the last. It is a slow, tedious business, but the Matrix is patient.
Said bearers are kept in the dark about being tampered with. The Matrix doesn't want to deceive anyone, but its mission of a secure Cybertron is infinitely more important.
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(unofficial fan art redesigns, I don't own the characters or names)
