Combiners

**Combiners** (コンビナー, *Konbinā*), sometimes capitalized, sometimes not, is a group in the *DC* series. They a group of Transformers that assemble and combine their bodies into a single machine, or that composite machine itself. Most combiners form a larger Super Robot with its own unique personality (a character in its own right), but other varieties of combiner exist, forming vehicles, weapons, or other items. Combiners tend to be considerably larger and more powerful than the average Transformer, equivalent to strategic-grade weapons.

There are a number of combiner-related terms that can be easy to mix up, partially because some of them are used interchangeably. Additionally, most of them have no formal definition and thus may be used differently by different fans. Consequently, most of the discussion which follows should not be taken as the word of Primus, but as a rough description of common usage.

"*Decepticons are **obsessed** with combining. Put two of 'em in a room and within seconds one will be standing on the other's shoulders. **Fact**.*"

—Swerve on Combiners.

## Terms for combiners

**Combiner**: As above, a member of a group of Transformers who assemble into a composite form. Also refers to that composite form itself. This is the most general term for all combining Transformers, and the most common term that has been used by Hasbro in an official capacity, starting with the *Micromaster Combiners* from 1990 (with the exception of the more limited "special teams" and a recent official use of the term "gestalt"), having even appeared with its own logo on the 2001 *Robots in Disguise* toyline packaging.**Gestalt**: Generally only a "big robot" combiner with an emergent personality, but usage is imprecise. The term was coined by fans, and there was never consensus on how broadly it could be applied; for example, if Squawkbox would fall under the category or not. The term was and remains quite popular in the fandom, and it eventually gained official use as well. It's unclear when or how it first arose, but it is commonly understood to refer to gestalt psychology, wherein the word roughly means a thing that is greater than or different from the sum of its parts. It remained firmly in realm of fanon for years, though its appearance in some *Transformers: Energon* design sketches showed that the term had caught on with Hasbro designers. Then in 2007, "gestalt" made its first official appearance in the comic bio of the *Titanium Series* Menasor toy, followed in the very same year by the *Spotlight: Optimus Prime* comic (referring to Monstructor), and again in 2009 in the Transformers: Animated "First (and Second) in Flight" comic wherein Perceptor describes Jetfire's & Jetstorm's combination into Safeguard as a sort of "gestalt powerlink".

**Scramble City combiner**: A specific type of Generation 1 giant gestalt that follows the five-member design featured in the Japanese *Scramble City* toyline. The team leader is larger than the other members and forms the main body of the combiner, while the others are smaller and form the limbs. The limbs are interchangeable, although there is always a generally-accepted “normal” formation. Further, the limbs are interchangeable from one Scramble City-style combiner to another, making for a large number of bizarre combinations. Limbs are also able to attach to and augment Metroplex & Metrotitan (see "Notes" below). Note that this term is purely descriptive rather than being a proper name.

**Special Team**: A synonym for Scramble City-style combiner. When the *Scramble City* toys were marketed in Europe they were referred to as Special Teams, and the term even appeared in the UK comic book series. The term was used in some marketing materials in the US, such as packing lists for the toy case assortments, but never appeared in the American fiction until the *Ultimate Guide* was published in 2004. It was also used as the name for a Target exclusive five-pack of redecos of *Cybertron* Legends toys released under the *Universe* banner, "Special Team Leaders". Ironically, none of these toys were actually *combiners*—the term simply referred to the *characters*, since the redecos were homages to the leaders of Generation 1 combiner teams, four of which were Scramble City-style combiners.

**Super Robot**: A robot which is formed through the combination of two or more Transformers. Powered-up robot modes composed of only one Transformer who combines with some of their own accessories are often also referred to as Super Robots, such as Powermaster Optimus Prime or the incarnations of Prime from *Robots in Disguise* and all three *Unicron Trilogy* series. It is probably safe to informally refer to any such mode as a Super Robot (thus including, say, G1 Ultra Magnus and *Energon* Landmine). Note that this means Super Robots are not always combiners and do not have to have their own personality. Rather, Super Robot and combiner are two different categories of Transformer which *sometimes* overlap. A one-robot Super Robot may also be referred to as that robot's Super Mode.

**Fusilateral quintrocombiner**: Coined by Simon Furman in issue 9 of the *Generation 2* comic to refer to the Combaticons. It presumably is meant to refer to all the Scramble City-style teams except possibly the Seacons, as their combined forms consist of six robots (not five, so they could possibly be fusilateral hexocombiners I guess...). It may also apply to the Predacons, but it doesn't matter because nobody uses this term anyway.

**Amalgam model**: Yet another obscure term for combiners first used by Simon Furman via Wheeljack in the "*Devastation Derby!*" story in the UK comic books.

## Combiner list

### Scramble City-type combiners

#### Heroes

* Computron
	+ Scattershot (torso)
	+ Afterburner (right arm)
	+ Lightspeed (right leg)
	+ Nosecone (left leg)
	+ Strafe (left arm)

* Defensor
	+ Blades (right arm)
	+ First Aid (left arm)
	+ Groove (right leg)
	+ Heatrock
	+ Hot Spot (torso)
	+ Medix
	+ Rook
	+ Skyfeather
	+ Streetwise (left leg)

* Optimus Maximus
	+ Ironhide (left leg)
	+ Mirage (left arm)
	+ Orion Pax/Optimus/Optimus Prime (leader; torso)
	+ Prowl (right leg)
	+ Hot Rod/Rodimus/Rodimus Prime (chest)
	+ Sunstreaker (right arm)

* Sky Reign
	+ Hound (left arm)
	+ Sky Lynx (torso)
	+ Smokescreen (right leg)
	+ Trailbreaker (left leg)
	+ Wheeljack (right arm)

* Superion
	+ Air Raid (left leg)
	+ Alpha Bravo
	+ Fireflight (right arm)
	+ Powerglide
	+ Skydive (right leg)
	+ Slingshot (left arm)
	+ Silverbolt (torso)

* + Victorion
		- Dustup (left leg)
		- Jumpstream (left arm)
		- Pyra Magna (torso)
		- Rust Dust (chest)
		- Skyburst (right leg)
		- Stormclash (right arm)

* Volcanicus
	+ Grimlock (torso)
	+ Sludge (right leg)
	+ Slug (left leg)
	+ Snarl (left arm)
	+ Swoop (right arm)

* Wreckage
	+ Bulletfist (torso)
	+ Topspin (right arm)
	+ Whirl (left arm)
	+ Twintwist (right leg)
	+ Thunderhead (left leg)

#### Villains

* Abominus
	+ Hun-Gurrr (leader; torso)
	+ Rippersnapper (left arm)
	+ Blot (right arm)
	+ Sinnertwin (left leg)
	+ Cutthroat (right leg)

* Bruticus
	+ Onslaught (torso)
	+ Brawl (left leg)
	+ Vortex (left arm)
	+ Swindle (right leg)
	+ Blast Off (right arm)

* Devastator
	+ Bonecrusher (left arm)
	+ Dirt Boss (head)
	+ Hightower
	+ Hook (upper body)
	+ Long Haul (lower body)
	+ Mixmaster (left leg)
	+ Scavenger (right arm)
	+ Scoop
	+ Scrapper (right leg)

* Galvatronus
	+ Cyberwarp (left arm)
	+ Cyclonus (torso)
	+ Riotgear (left leg)
	+ Skyjack (right arm)
	+ Treadshock (right leg)

* Menasor
	+ Breakdown (right leg)
	+ Blackjack
	+ Dead End (left arm)
	+ Dragbreak
		- Drag Strip (right arm)
		- Wildbreak
	+ Heatmark
		- Heatseeker
		- Slashmark
	+ Motormaster (torso)
	+ Offroad (chest)
	+ Wildrider (left leg)

* Predaking
	+ Divebomb (left arm)
	+ Headstrong (right leg)
	+ Razorclaw (torso)
	+ Rampage (right arm)
	+ Tantrum (left leg)

* Ruination

## External links

* Combiners *Teletraan 1: The Transformers Database*
* Combiners *TFWiki: The Transformers Wiki*