The Case for Human Character Cards

In prior articles, I've listed the most wanted characters from the Generation 1 Cartoon and the missing characters from Transformers the Movie.  Many of my wishes have been granted, so I figured it was time to get back on the horse and come up with a new most wanted list.

Why Add Human Characters?

Game wise, star cards (and the new stratagem cards) did a nice job of helping us make use of the leftover stars some team combinations stick us with.  4 star characters fill in that niche as well on the high end.  But what about 2-3 star gaps?  Sure, there are the heads for Titans, but they can't be put into play without a body.  This is where small human cards (could) come in. 

Theme wise, both Decepticons and Autobots worked with humans.  Many times the human would ride in the vehicle form of the transformer, so building that into the game would fit the theme.  As the 'plot' of the card game moves closer to Earth, adding humans will eventually be a natural progression.

How Could Humans Be Included?

Human cards would be small character cards. Humans could be a 2-3 star customization option that teams up with a transformer to give them a bonus.  That bonus might be an additional health for the team or an ability, similar to the head mechanic in wave 5, or it could be a gateway for equipping special upgrades on characters. Their fates would be tied to the transformer they are riding with and the combination would count as one character, unlike the heads who could pop off and fight on their own. 

Who Should Be Included?

There are many humans that appear once or twice, but a few stand out.

Spike Witwicky: Spike is the main human character in Transformers.  His name is pretty cool. He usually hangs out with Bumblee, so whatever bonus he gives should be increased if he is paired with his buddy.

Sparkplug Witwicky: Sparkplug (another cool name) is Spike's dad.  He is good at fixing things, so his ability could be to heal one HP after each turn battle.

Dr. Arkeville (hey, that's me!): The namesake of this site, Dr. Arkeville helped the Deceptions in exchange for a promise to rule the world.  He provided hypo-chips to allow the Decepticons to enslave humans.  After figuring out that the Decepticons were going to destroy earth, leaving him nothing to rule, he aligned with Starscream.  Given his scientific genius, perhaps pairing with him would allow a character to apply two upgrades in one turn.

Carly: Carly starts out as Spike's girlfriend, but by the time the movie rolls around, they are married and have a son named Daniel.  She and Spike went to a rock concert once and took Blaster along, so she's got that going for her.

Daniel: The son of Spike and Carly first appears in Transformers the Movie.  He's honestly a bit annoying, but I would only be excited for him if there is a battle card for his transforming exo-suit armor.  Since he kind of got in the way, he could add two health to a character, but cost it one defense.

Chip: Chip is a friend of Spike who is good at science and computers.  Maybe he could hack into enemy upgrades or something.

Buster: In the comics, Thundercracker befriended a dog named Buster.  Buster seemed to make him happy, so why not have him add 1 health to the character he is paired with and 2 if that character is Thundercracker?  I mean, dogs make everyone happy, right? Or maybe when he's paired with Thundercracker, he can use non-deception faction specific cards.

Dr. Fujiyama: He didn't appear in many episodes (one I think) and when he did, he made Nightbird (which didn't turn out so well).  But, he was a smart guy who could add something to be used by Decepticons, Autobots, and Mercenaries, to reflect the role his creation played in the episode - he made the ninja robot for good, got it jacked by the Decepticons, and she was caught by the Autobots.
In the game, she is a mercenary.

Chumley: Lord Chumley is a big-game hunter who wanted to bag himself an Optimus Prime for his collection.  Why do all jerky big game hunters have to be British lords?  Either way, seems like a potential ally for Decepticon characters to me.

Kremzeek: He's not really human, he's more of an electric thingy who just annoys everyone.  After bursting forth from yet another Decepticon experiment gone wrong, Kremseek began wrecking all their stuff.  So, the Decepticon's dumped him off at the Autobot's base and he began to wreak havoc there.  Perhaps Kremzeek is a character that hurts you while you hold him, but when you pass him to the other team, he messes with them - like a hot potato.  Plus, he's kind of cute.



Marissa Faireborn: A captain in the Earth Defense Command (which I guess would be Space Force?) she is an ally of the Autobots. She's so legit she flew to save Blurr and Wheelie from some bat robots that could transform into bombs.  And the best part about her is, she has a cool retro spacesuit that allows her to fly in space ... apparently without needing a face mask to breathe!

Cade Yeager: Mark Wahlberg's contribution to the Transformers franchise can be  is encapsulated in one line from Transformers: Age of Extinction "I think we just found a Transformer."  If you add him to your team, you should be able to bring back someone from the KO pile - I mean, he did find and repair Optimus Prime! Or if you want to get really freaky, he can 'find a transformer' from outside your starting lineup and somehow get him onto your team.  Imagine how fun it would be to be almost dead but snag a new teammate while proclaiming "I think I just found a Transformer!"  Note: I can't in good conscience really advocate for Cade Yeager to get a character card. I just had to work that quote into an article.

Agent Burns: John Cena played some sort of military guy in the spin-off/reboot/prequel Bumblebee movie.  He had the best line of the movie: "They literally call themselves Decepticons. That doesn’t set off any red flags?" Upon further reflection, they should never make an Agent Burns character card under any circumstances.