Predaking (G1)


 * Predaking is a Decepticon Predacon from the Generation 1 continuity family.



Predaking is the ferocious fusion of all five of the Predacons: Divebomb, Headstrong, Rampage, Tantrum, and team leader Razorclaw. Whereas most of his kind suffer from the union of numerous conflicting personalities, Predaking's components, bringing together their shared love of the hunt, create a single, complete persona, driven by the need to hunt and kill - with all the advantages of other gestalts, but none of the mental drawbacks.

In most cases of combiners, it is a given that strength and raw power would be heavily boosted as a result of the combination, however, Predaking has a little bit more going for him. His tracking skills increase exponentially, granting him heightened radar and other robotic senses. Nothing can escape his grasp and no creature can slip past his notice. When Predaking is on your trail, all hope is lost.

Unless your name is Sky Lynx. "Predaking has the power! He needs nothing more!"

- Predaking has the power to survive

Cartoon continuity

 * Voice Actor: Bud Davis (US), Tomomichi Nishimura (Japan), Edgar Fruitier (French Canadian)



Predaking first saw action during the short-lived Decepticon-Quintesson alliance in the year 2005. The Predacons attempted to prevent Blurr, Wheelie, the human Marissa Faireborn and the magnificent Sky Lynx from escaping Jupiter's moon of Io with Metroplex's transformation cog. When the individual Predacons failed, they merged into Predaking, but were quickly defeated by Sky Lynx.

Soon afterward, the Decepticons took over the slave mining planet of Dredd, forcing the halpess prisoners to mine the super-hard death crystals in a scheme by Galvatron to destroy Cybertron with a giant death-crystal firing cannon. When several slaves were frightened out of the mine by the monster Chaos, Predaking swooped down to recapture the escapees. Later, during an Autobot attack that saw Sky Lynx buried under tons of rock, Predaking separated Blurr, Wreck-Gar, Wheelie and Grimlock from Kup by blocking off the mine entrace with his laser sword. He continued to force the Autobots back to Sky Lynx (who had managed to escape the landslide) while shrugging off their laser fire. Meanwhile, Kup lured Chaos out of the volcano, causing another landslide that this time buried Predaking under tons of rock.

On Earth's Moon, Predaking fought alongside the Terrorcon combiner Abominus until they, along with the other 'primitive' animal-based Transformers, were called away by Primacron's Assistant. They were led to an ancient world, in the hopes their primitive instincts would defeat Primacron's latest creation, the energy-draining Tornadron. After the defeated Trypticon's corpse seemingly crushed Grimlock, the primitives split up and ran for their lives. The Predacons continued to run until Headstrong declared he would rather stand and fight than die running. Concurring, his fellow Predacons merged with him to form Predaking, but were quickly put into stasis lock by Tornadron.

As part of a series of Decepticon attacks on Japan, Predaking and Devastator pursued Broadside in the Sea of Japan.

2010 Manga
Predaking suffered an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the Omnibots.

The precise origins of the animated Predacons are never divulged in the series, with them simply appearing in Five Faces of Darkness, Part 5'' with no explanation. A TV Magazine story page later made the claim that Predaking was built through cooperation between the Decepticons and the Quintessons, although whether or not that was the original intention of the American series writers is unknown.''

Headmasters
Predaking showed up a few times, usually just long enough for him to get beat up by Fortress Maximus.

Zone OVA and manga

 * Voice Actor: Yukimasa Kishino (Japan)





Predaking was selected by Violen Jygar as one of his 9 Decepticon Demon-Generals. Given the rank of Beast General and gifted with new weaponry and armor, Violen Jygar sent Predaking to the Earth to steal the Zodiac before the Autobots could get it.

He failed, however, and after seeing the likes of King Poseidon and Trypticon get killed in battle, attempted to escape. His escape was thwarted by Dai Atlas, who sliced him into two from head to crotch, exposing his vaguely organic-looking brain and killing the Decepticon.

Marvel Comics continuity
''(Marvel UK issues are referred to in italics.) Predaking's first outing on Earth was in the course of a hunt by the Predacons against the Autobot leader Optimus Prime. Prime having foiled the Predacons' initial attacks individually, they merged into Predaking and resumed the chase. Essentially Predaking's role in that hunt concluded once he had flushed Prime out into the open and worn him down, thus rendering him vulnerable to the attack of Megatron. The Predacons returned over the Space Bridge to Cybertron.''

Predaking's next foray on Earth was part of a scheme by Shockwave to destabilise Megatron's sanity to such an extent that the way would be clear for Shockwave to take command. Shockwave supplied fake Autobrands to the Predacons (and thus Predaking by extension) and the Predacons ambushed Megatron in the swamps of Florida. Megatron did not recall who the Predacons were thanks to a bout of amnesia connected to his earlier involvement with them. The Predacons had similar difficulties subduing Megatron in their individual forms and merged to become Predaking. Predaking fared little better against Megatron and was rendered unconscious by a blast from the deranged Decepticon's fusion cannon.

Dreamwave comics continuity
Eons ago, the Predacons were banished from Cybertron to Beest, where their higher functions degraded, rendering them feral. Megatron, who had been overthrown by Starscream (well, thrown out of a shuttle), tracked down the Predacons, then modified them to become combiners, creating Predaking.

Starscream and his Combaticons were in training (with Sky Lynx of all people as a target) when Predaking suddenly arose from the sea, seeking to capture the treacherous Decepticon Air Commander. The Combaticons quickly formed into (the much-less intelligent) Bruticus and counter-attacked by destroying Predaking's shoulder-mounted guns. Forced back, Predaking quickly put down his opponent by firing one of his foot cannons at Bruticus' head, blasting off part of his face.

When Starcream fled, lamenting Bruticus' latest defeat, Predaking attempted to follow until Bruticus crushed one of his wings and threw him onto the island. Damaged, but not defeated, Predaking easily dodged the slow-witted Combaticon combiner's rifle blast, then erected a defensive energy field around himself to deflect the follow-up shot. As Bruticus pondered a possible rifle malfunction, Predaking punched his rival in the face with a spiked knuckle, then impaled the crippled Bruticus upon Headstrong's horn, finally deactivating the Combaticons.

This was the first time he won a fight. And it was against another fellow Decepticon. Oh well, better than nothing.

The Beast Within
For the first time in comic book history, Predaking is completely and totally owned. Except, you know, all those other times. Predaking would like you to ignore those. And this one too, come to think of it.

Devil's Due Continuity
The Predacons and Seacons got into a territorial argument after Megatron's death, which led to a face off between Predaking and Piranacon. Predaking emerged the victor but was stopped by SerpentOR before he could finish the aquatic combiner off.

Generation 1

 * Predaking (1986, 2004)
 * Japanese ID number: D-78


 * Predaking is, by far, the largest of the traditional central component-leader-type combiner toys. He is formed by combining all five Predacons together. Unlike the Scramble City-style toys such as Bruticus or Defensor, Predaking's arms and legs are not interchangeable. Razorclaw's sword and beast mode cannon serve as Predaking's primary weapons, with Tantrum and Headstrong's back-mounted cannons as his feet.


 * Like Defensor and Bruticus, Predaking's components were released in both plastic and metal versions. Japan only got the plastic versions.


 * Hasbro only released the individual Predacons, but a giftset was available in Japan. In late 2004, Predaking was reissued to much rejoicing of people who could not afford the after market prices on a vintage piece. This reissue used metal parts, and the pieces that were originally soft plastic were now hard plastic.

Titanium Series

 * Predaking (3" Robot Masters, 2006)




 * As part of the Titanium series 3" line, Predaking is constructed of mostly diecast metal and plastic parts, but cannot transform and has very limited articulation. His sculpt and colour scheme is based upon the original G1 toy, but has Rampage and Divebomb occupying each other's positions, like the cartoon and comic model.

Trivia

 * A Predaking Action Master was planned at one point, but apparently went no further than a concept sketch. It was intended to be the included rider of a transforming dirt bike .  While Predaking was scrapped, the bike was refined and included with the Action Master Axer.


 * Incidentally, the aforementioned concept art was found in an Arby's parking lot after the end of BotCon 2000, where it had presumably come unstowed.