Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con

For Honor! For Glory! For Cybertron!

Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con Tech Specs

Base information for character / toy Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con.

Name	Vector Prime , Safeguard
Japanese Name	Vector Prime , Roots
Japanese Number	GC03
Faction	Autobots
Motto	For Honor! For Glory! For Cybertron!

Bio
Vector Prime is one of the first Transformers. A powerful, wise and incredibly ancient warrior, he has served as protector over Cybertron since its beginnings. Pulled out of the shadows of time by a distress signal broadcast by his damaged planet, he arrives too late to save Cybertron without assistance. Arising from an era in which all Transformers lived in harmony, he is unaware of the conflict between the Autobots and Decepticons, a fact that Megatron uses to trick him and steal the map to the lost planets and the planet keys. Realizing his mistake, he joins Optimus Prime and pledges his knowledge and skill to the desperate quest to retrieve the planet keys before Megatron.

Tech Specs chart for Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con.

Strength	??	Intelligence	10
Speed	??	Endurance	10
Rank	??	Courage	10
Firepower	10	Skill	10

Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con Images

Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con Toy Information

Information related specifically to the toy.

Status	Released
Release Date	June 2005 (June 2005)
Wave	Cybertron Voyager Wave 1
MSRP	19.99
Size Class	Voyager
Suggested Age	5+
Assortment #	80287
Product #	80913
Recolors / Reuses	Cybertron Galaxy Force Vector Prime , Galaxy Force Vector Prime , Botcon Exclusive Alpha Trion , Universe Vector Prime

Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con Parts List

Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con toy parts information.

Figure Type	Plane/Spaceship
Figure Color	White
Disc	Clear
Missle Launcher	Blue
Sword	Blue

Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con Review

-Submitted by: mag jr.

Cybertron launched with two toys in the Voyager (mega) price point. One is Crumplezone; the other is Vector Prime, who, according to his Tech Spec, is one of the oldest of all Transformers. (Primus's herald, anyone?)

Safeguard

Safeguard is Vector Prime's Minicon partner. It's interesting how much more detailed his alt mode is compared to the Armada Minicons. Basically, he's a Targetmaster, with his vehicle mode functioning as an extra weapon for Vector Prime, which is a good use of the Minicon connection gimmick.

Safeguard (known as Roots in Galaxy Force... and I'm glad they changed that name, at least) is basically a little gunship, with his nose functioning as a gunbarrel. Color-wise, you're looking at white, dark gray, and green metallic paint. Strangely, if pics are anything to go buy, it doesn't look like Safeguard was really changed much for US release.

Transforming Safeguard is easy (which is the norm for Minicons). Just pull his legs down, flip the feet up, and pull the nose/barrel back and you're done.

Safeguard has a pretty good sculpt for a Minicon. Interestingly enough, he clearly has a Prime/Convoy head and face; one wonders what the connection there is. He also has a decent amount of articulation--8 points, at the shoulders, elbows, hips, and knees.

Safeguard is a pretty decent little guy, but there's no doubt his main attraction is his ability to interact with the bigger toy.

Safeguard stands at about 2.5 inches tall.

Vehicle Mode

Vector Prime has attracted a lot of controversy since his release, because of the changed coloration and the use of cheaper, rubbery plastic for his sword and wings compared to the Galaxy Force version.

About the coloration, I will say this: It doesn't hurt the toy at all. The dark gray is slightly more attractive, but the white makes Vector Prime look, not like a brand new young 'bot, but like he's wearing armor, which fits nicely with his robot mode design (which is clearly intended to look like, yes, a knight wearing armor). The dark red that shows through might be his "real" color, while the metallic green and gold are there to add accents. It's a nice color scheme.

The only coloration change I don't like is the total lack of red on the wings, which makes the toy look slightly cheaper. Which leads us to the rubbery plastic.

I will say this: The rubbery plastic causes no problems with his sword at all. In fact, it looks just fine, and does not droop (mine is perfectly straight and unbent; a few minutes under a heavy book eliminated any crookedness from being slid out from under the bubble). The wings are a different story. They were perfectly straight and unbent inside the box, but getting the twisties off them bent them, and I have not been able to straighten them to my satisfaction. Careful bending did eliminate most of the worst problems, and when he's in vehicle mode I leave them both in the up position to keep the bottom wings from dragging on any surface.

Otherwise, Vector Prime has one of the best vehicle designs in the entire line so far. Clearly influenced by Star Wars (although not quite a direct rip on the Sith Infiltrator from Episode I), he has enough sculpt and tech detail for five Transformers. It's hard to believe how much was worked into this guy, with all the gears and little widgets all over his body. An excellent vehicle mode (apart from the wings). Safeguard can ride in the area above his cockpit (just lower him onto the peg), and his sword stores on the left side of the nose section, a cool idea for storage.

His main weapon in vehicle mode is a missile launcher hidden in the nose section. I keep setting this off accidentally when I transform him, and it shoots pretty far. Be careful you don't lose the missile. I like that they used translucent plastic, so the missile could look like an energy blast.

Vector Prime's key gimmick is that when you insert the key, you get sounds. Unfortunately, I didn't notice that he didn't come with batteries when I picked him up (it was the first Cybertron toy I found, and I was a little too excited to read the box carefully), and I don't have any AAA batteries, so I can't yet tell you if his sounds are any good. Just a heads-up.

Another note: Vector Prime's key is totally unpainted (although the emblems inside it are done in vac-metal). This irritates a lot of people, although at least in this case it can be fixed with a little paint. Strangely, the key is shown on the box with gold paint; the Galaxy Force version is silver.

Vector Prime's transform is the easiest of all the Cybertron toys I have so far (except for Safeguard). Basically, he's a fold-former. Push the wings together and put them in the horizontal position. Pull his legs down and push the feet up. Pull the arms out from the sides and push the plates on the lower arms up until they stop, then flip the shoulder plates up. Pull the wing assemblies down until they meet in the middle of his back. Pull the nose section down onto his back and rotate the head forward and you're done.

Robot Mode

Vector Prime has one of the coolest-looking robot modes in TF history. Basically, he looks like an armored knight, wtih a head sculpt strongly reminiscent of the Autobot faction symbol.

He's also very well articulated, with about 15 points of usable articulation. You can bend him into almost any pose, although his shoulders are slightly limited by the wings on his back. His arm joints are very stiff, though, which makes this somewhat problematic; annoyingly, the arm and shoulder plates are loose and don't like to stay in place, which can be a problem until you get him into the pose you like.

Considering how much was removed, it was nice of Hasbro to at least add some new apps to his torso, below the big round area. It's also nice that the designer jointed the armor plates above his legs, so his leg movement isn't limited by his waist armor, and since each piece is jointed independently, it just looks so much nicer.

Overall, this is a great sculpt and a great toy. There just isn't much to add to that.

Vector Prime stands at a cool 8 inches (!) tall, making him bigger than most of the mega and ultra toys out of the last two lines (apart from Tidal Wave and Wing Saber), not to mention any of the Alternators.

Last Word

Assuming I can find him at an affordable price (a big assumption), I have to admit that I am thinking of importing the Galaxy Force version of this toy. I don't mind the color changes (except for the lost paint on the wings) or the sword. What I do mind are the rubbery wings, which drive me nuts. However, this is still a good toy. If the rubbery plastic doesn't scare you off or you can't afford to import, make sure to pick this guy up. He's worth it.


Submitted by: Razerwire

Here we go with Vector Prime!!!

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Galaxy Force: Vector Prime

Vector Prime has an important role in Galaxy Force... He seems to have some thorough knowledge of the Planet Force... For more about that, I'd suggest you hop on over to the cartoon reviews...

You'll be receiving Vector Prime's translucent turqoise sword, his Micron, Roots, his special Force Chip, a translucent turqoise missile, and Vector Prime himself when you open the box...

Spaceship Mode:

If you've seen Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, you'll be reminded of Darth Maul's Sith Infiltrator when look at Vector Prime's alternate mode... It's too much of a tribute to call it a coincidence... He is roughly 11 inches long and 8 inches wide in this mode...

Vector Prime has an amazing amount of detail as far as his design goes... It seems like everywhere you look, you'll see detailed gears on him, which fits his association with time...

The primary color of Vector Prime is an off white/grayish color... It's hard to pinpoint what color it is exactly... The plastic also has some reflective flaking in it, giving it somewhat of a translucent look to him... He also has a lot of gold, metallic rust, metallic turqoise, and a tiny bit of red on him...

His two "wings" are translucent turqoise plastic with a metallic rust border... The wings can be moved into different positions... He also has translucent turqoise plastic on the sides of the cockpit, as well as the cockpit windows themselves... There's two radar pieces in the undercarriage that are also made of the same translucent plastic...

Vector Prime's translucent turqoise missile is housed in the nose of the ship... There's a black button in front of the cockpit windows that shoots the missile... His blue translucent sword is stored on the left side of the ship in the nose... I love the fact that when the sword is stored, it looks like it's a part of the ship... There's a clip on the side that keeps the sword snugly in place... Roots can be stored on top of the cockpit in his plane mode... I will discuss more on Roots later...

The Force Chip port is located on top of the spaceship towards the rear... I never put in the batteries for Vector Prime but from what I've read online, he makes sounds for his Force Chip gimmick... He has no physical gimmicks... His Force Chip is a treat in itself... Vector Prime gets his own unique Force Chip like Galaxy Convoy and Master Megatron do... It's the same translucent turqoise color as the rest of the translucent plastic... The chip has silver paint on it, but leaves five circular windows translucent... Within these windows, you can see the five different Planet Force symbols... One other feature that I love of the Force Chip is the dial on the top of the chip... It gives it a pocketwatch look which is great... Another thing to notice is that on the back of the chip, there is an Autobot badge on the metallic rust colored plastic... The badge is surrounded by what looks like circuitry... This is the only affiliation badge found anywhere on Vector Prime...

Transformation:

Remove Roots, the Force Chip, and the sword...

Detach Vector Prime's legs from the bottom of the ship and swing them up... Swing his feet up... You're done with his legs...

Fold his "wings" together and swing them down... Next, take the nose of the ship and swing it down over the wings... You're done with his back...

Take his arms and swing them both upwards... Take his lower arms and swing them downwards... Slide his lower arm guards up towards his elbows... You're done with his arms...

Finally, rotate his head to face forward and you're done!!!

Robot Mode:

Vector Prime's robot mode is one of an ancient looking robot... His wings in the rear make him look like he has a cape which is just unbelievably awesome... (The wings can also be moved in his robot mode as well...) He looks like a knight who's been through many battles and came out on top... His sword is just awesome... His color scheme is pretty much the same as his alternate mode...

His Force Chip port is now located on his chest... It covers what seems to be an opening in his chest... I keep being reminded of Flava Flav of Public Enemy when I insert his Force Chip... Those who've seen Flava know what I mean... I believe some sounds can be heard when you raise his arm... But like I stated before, I never heard it because I didn't put the batteries in... There's no physical gimmick to his Force Chip...

His points of articulation are as follows:

Head rotates: check
Shoulders rotate: check
Shoulders pivot: check
Elbows pivot: check
Elbows rotate: check
Hands rotate: negative
Waist rotate: negative
Hips rotate: check
Hips pivot: check
Knees pivot: check
Knees rotate: check
Feet pivot: check
Feet rotate: negative

Galaxy Force: Roots

Roots is Vector Prime's Micron... He's actually a triple changer... His three modes are robot, spaceship, and arm cannon...

Spaceship Mode:

Roots has the same off white/grayish color as Vector Prime... He also has a bit of black and his wings are highlighted with the metallic turqoise paint... He's about three and half inches long and roughly two and a half inches wide at the wingspan... His Micron port is on the undercarriage of the ship... What I love about this mode is the detail on the nose of the ship, which also happens to be the barrel of the cannon...

Transformation to Arm Cannon Mode:

Simply fold his wings downward and you're done!!!

Arm Cannon Mode:

When you attach him to Vector Prime's arm, it just adds to the coolness that is the entire figure... On one hand, he's got the traditional sword... On the other hand, he's got one helluva big assed arm cannon... What more can you ask for???

Transformation to Robot Mode:

Rotate his wings back up...

Flip his legs up and over from the rear of the ship... Flip out his feet... Flip the nose of the ship down and you're done!!!

Robot Mode:

Roots' robot mode is very well designed... It is a definite improvement from the Armada days... He's very stable when standing and has a bit of articulation himself...

Head rotates: negative
Shoulders rotate: check
Shoulders pivot: negative
Elbows pivot: check
Elbows rotate: check
Hands rotate: negative
Waist rotate: negative
Hips rotate: negative
Hips pivot: check
Knees pivot: check
Knees rotate: negative
Feet pivot: check
Feet rotate: negative

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Vector Prime has an amazingly simple transformation... And yet, he is still one of THE coolest Galaxy Force figures to date... Why??? Because of the detail on him... Also, his design is VERY unique... The ancient knight look is a first in Transformers, I believe, and it has paid of REALLY well...

The wings that give him the cape-like look along with his sword and arm guards complete the image and it just kicks ass...

Normally I do not like Microns, but Roots is definitely an exception... He is very well designed and compliments Vector Prime in ever single way... Most Microns look like ugly pimples when attached to their bigger counterparts, but Roots LOOKS like he belongs on Vector Prime all the time...

Overall, Vector Prime is a must have... Although his transformation process is unbelievably simple, the details in his design simply overwhelm that point... I highly recommend getting him...

Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con Cartoon / Movie Information

Info about Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con in the Transformers cartoons or movies.

Voice Actor

Richard Newman (US); Sho Hayami (Japan).

Appearances

Cybertron
01 Fallen
02 Haven
03 Hidden
04 Landmine
05 Space
07 Speed
08 Collapse
09 Time
10 Search
11 Deep
12 Ship
13 Hero
14 Race
15 Detour
16 Savage
17 Sand
18 Champions
19 Ice
20 Honour
21 Primal
22 Trust
23 Trap
24 Invasion
25 Retreat
26 Revelation
27 Critical
28 Assault
29 Starscream
30 United
31 Cybertron
32 Balance
33 Darkness
35 Escape
36 Family
37 Titans
38 Warp
39 Giant
40 Fury
41 City
42 Ambush
43 Challenge
44 Duel
45 Optimus
46 Showdown
47 Guardian
49 Endgame
50 Unfinished
51 Beginning

Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con Comic Book Information

Comic Appearances
Transformers Cybertron: Balancing Act #1 - "Vector Prime: In The Beginning"
Transformers Cybertron: Balancing Act #2 - "Balancing Act (Part 1)"
Transformers Cybertron: Balancing Act #3 - "Balancing Act (Part 2)"
Transformers Cybertron: Balancing Act #4 - "Balancing Act (Part 3)"
Transformers Cybertron: Balancing Act #5 - "Balancing Act (Part 4)"
Transformers Cybertron: Balancing Act #6 - "Balancing Act (Part 5)"
Transformers Cybertron: Balancing Act #7 - "Revelataions (Part 1)"
Transformers Cybertron: Balancing Act #8 - "Revelations (Part 2)"

Additional Vector Prime with Safeguard Mini-Con Resources

Notes
Cyber Key Code: v38g
Unlocked information from http://www.transformers.com:
Vector Prime is a Transformer from the earliest days of Cybertron's history. There is a legend of 13 original Transformers, built by Primus before he took the shape of the Planet Cybertron. It has been rumored that Vector Prime is actually one these original 13!

Contributors: Tony_Bacala, XJunky, Sol Fury, Optimus Scourge, holygrail 4, mag jr., Razerwire, Smkscrn GT, TreKain

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