Dragonformers Designs — VANGUARD 1
Tiktok got a whole image dump of these so I figured I’d throw them in for y’all as well. Each image has some minor details but I’ll go into them a little more below the cut (if I have things to say right now).
There WILL be more. Tumblr only has a 10-image limit, so we’ll have to cope with who I have finished atm. Tho some (Ultra Magnus and Ratchet) may need a style update to fit the future lineup.
Optimus Prime — Leader of the Vanguard and the last Prime chosen by the Matrix of Leadership. Strong-willed and equally as gentle, she cares deeply for her people and serves as a beacon of hope for all of them. Despite her rather gentle nature, she knows when to put her foot down to settle matters or to keep her soldiers in place. She is mated with Ratchet and the have one biological charge + two adopted drakes. She attempts to be a good role model for them, but struggles due to her overall health. After becoming a Prime, Optimus had to rethink everything after hearing the Allmother, and being the only one on Cybertron capable of connecting to her, especially as someone who had lost her faith long ago.
Ultra Magnus — brother to Optimus Prime and her most trusted lieutenant, Magnus tends to be a bit strict towards his soldiers, earning him a sour reputation for his uptightness. However, he is simply worried about their faction, especially after having to seek refuge on an alien planet across the cosmos. He is appointed captain to The Wreckers in order to keep the subgroup in line as Optimus’s health wanes. He does not enjoy it, but he would do anything for her.
Codexa — Adoptive mother of Optimus and Ultra Magnus. She was a Scribe to two Primes long ago before being kicked out and shunned by Sentinel after Zeta and Prima’s deaths. The small gathering of drakes she formed to look into Sentinel’s history would later become the Vanguard, led by her daughter. Now, she’s chief in communications, however she sometimes occupies the labs in her free time. She is not usually a fighter, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t skilled in combat.
Blaster — Courier-turned-recon soldier, Blaster is usually the one to boost morale with his good spirits. However, he’s somewhat anxious and tends to shy away when arguments get heated. He’s typically only deployed when Starscream or Soundwave are on the other end of the field thanks to his natural ability to nullify their sonic-based attacks. However, he also helps Codexa and Jazz during recon missions.
Prowl — Chief Strategist and Optimus’s advisor, Prowl’s analytical eye has been key to many of the Vanguards victories in past battles. He tends to butt heads with Optimus and some other members, however she claims she appreciates someone having the courage to tell her when she’s wrong. So despite their frequent arguments, his side of things helps her immensely in decision-making. He has a habit of making faction-wide decisions without her though.
Blurr — A praxian drake known for being as dull as he is quick. Comes from a rich past and a noble family, has difficulty emphasizing with other members of the Vanguard. He has a tendency to undermine his peers, too used to the old days where others fawned over his accomplishments on the track. The only authority he seems to really listen to is Optimus— probably only because she’s extra nice to him. He hates the thought of disappointing her, stating it feels like he’s letting his own mother down. Everyone else is fine, though. (Close friends with Mirage and often goes on missions with him.)
Ratchet — Born and raised in Tyger Pax, Ratchet spent his entire life training to be a surgeon. It wasn’t until Praxis was raided by a faction of wyverns that he gave up his position as a lead surgeon to become a field medic that he got involved in the early stages of the war. He tended to any and all that needed medical assistance and built up a small underground sanctuary on the outskirts of Tyger so he can tend to the wounded in peace. Those he helped were expected to help him in return, either by becoming a temporary assistant, making sure the sanctuary was well-kept, or even going out and bringing the injured in need in to him. He met Optimus later when the new Vanguard came to Tyger pax on the belief that it’s next on the list to be raided. Her soft spark and persistence on helping warmed his spark. He joined the Vanguard after Tyger Pax was successfully defended as Optimus’s CMO— later becoming her mate.
Jazz — One of Optimus’s most trusted mechs during the war. Also one of the best spies on the team, Jazz is the top mech often put on missions to intercept Legion communications or even simply spy on their current territory. But just because he keeps a keen eyes on the enemy faction, doesn’t mean he’s not keeping a closer one on his fellow Vanguard members. He is the reason Optimus often seems omniscient in the way she knows everything that’s happened without her nearby, in reality Jazz is just her favorite snitch. He’s a gossiper at heart and likes knowing that nothing is happening behind her back as a leader.
Elita-1 — Second in Command of the Vanguard, often considered Optimus's right hand. If she's not by her partner, she's usually found keeping guard of the Prime's quarters or by her side instead. In casual circumstances, where rank and role doesn't matter, Elita is known to be a tease and very light-hearted.
Arcee — One of the few Serpent Drakes after the Great Drought, Arcee feels somewhat out of place in the Vanguard but is under the belief that she wouldn’t be welcome anywhere else. With Optimus’s insistence on trusting her, she’s made her home among the vanguard and has a solid grasp in the role of “lead in energon dispensary”. She’s in charge of making sure energon is properly filtered and processed for all frame types and has been credited in their reserves’ recent quality upgrade.
And finally, About Serpent Drakes. A rare species found on cybertron, their unique organs allow them to filter out minerals and toxic materials out of naturally flowing energon. They were an integral part of cybertron’s ecosystem before advances in energon processing were made. Large communities would be built around lakes and natural deposits, centered around ensuring the quality of energon before any of it is distributed. However despite the importance of their role here, serpent drakes had often been ostracized in larger cities, academies, work places, etc, due to their uncanny resemblance to common depictions of the Worldeater Serpent mythos— tales of the evil head of Allmother Primus surviving its separation from her and eating the world whole. The Allmother’s warnings to the Primes had spread to the wider community, causing panic and later full on distrust in serpent drakes and their true role on cybertron. They were the first to be hit by the Great Drought and the first to be ignored by Sentinel Prime.
