INTRODUCING: The Primes

With several deadlines dropping recently and various housing issues I haven't had a fat lot of content for DeviantArt, so what I do have will be stilted for now so it seems like I'm doing more!

Some among you might remember the Primes from way, way back. They were originally meant to be a series of robot lines based on apes, monkeys and chimps, to varying degrees. Primes 13, 14 and 15 were unique, while the rest were made up of dozens, sometimes hundreds, of units. The Prime-8s were supposed to be the most common and were versatile enough to provide a variety of functions, with the Primes in general being the huge core of Professor Fandango's army.

Don't recognise them? That's because I hardly used them which, for the core of an army was pretty diabolical.

So what do they do now? Well now they've been completely retooled and each individual Prime is unique, the only one of its kind and performs a (mostly) specific role in Fandango Labs.

In the near future I'll introduce them all separately (whether that will be by updating this image or breaking them apart I don't yet know, so if you keep seeing this pop up in your inbox there's a reason.)

And no, I haven't forgotten about Smash, that should be back pretty soon.

PRIME-1 The snitch, Prime-1 is essentially a floating surveillance camera and is small enough to be able to squeeze into some otherwise safe and secret areas.

PRIME-2 I've always likened Prime-2 to R2-D2. Only able to emit chittering noises, this little fellow is a maintenance robot who specialises in other robots. He can wield tools in his right hand, and charge up apparatus with his plug hand.

PRIME-3 This lumbering clunker is often paired with Prime-2 since he too works in repair and maintenance, mostly in large robots and vehicles. His left arm is a powerful torch used for cutting and welding and his right arm is used for lifting. It can also allow Prime-2 to reach high places that require intricacy. Finally, Three's chest contains a number of hand tools that can be utilised by Two, offering them a sort of symbiotic relationship.

PRIME-4 The cook. Prime-4 can whip up a multitude of tasty treats for hungry bods. His body is an oven and his right arm contains a variety of kitchen utensils.

PRIME-5 The first Prime built for battle, Prime-5 totes a bladed machine gun and a small stock of grenades. He is a little flimsy and has since been outclassed by a later model in terms of firepower but his light frame make him an excellent scout. He is also quite sensible and mature, a relatively rare occurrence for a Prime.

PRIME-6 Prime-6 is an experiment into skeletal structure and realistic movement, which of course was much more pertinent when Prime-8s were biological, "real monkeys" but Six remained. Powered by its own electrical aura, if it is allowed to dissipate then Six become effectively useless. Fake scientists will tell you that the 'reverse ionic charge' or something in the aura is what allows it to float about, ghosty style.

PRIME-7 If you're snooping around the Neon Fortune Zone you might be approached by this little fellow. Pop a coin in his hat and he'll do a little dance! Then he'll flash his rear at you. That's because his abdomen is a magic 7 ball and his rump will offer you a fortune! It might be helpful, it might be a lie, it's hard to tell really, but it does generate a little bit of income for Professor Fandango, at least.

PRIME-8 After a complete makeover, Prime-8 is not only one of my favourites, but also the closest thing Fandango will have to a sidekick. As such he's a bit bumbling, a bit unsure of himself but quite enthusiastic in his loyalty. For the new Prime-8 I wanted to keep a link to the original biological monkey design by eventually settling on a monkey mask. To accentuate the fact that it is a mask I made his head much bigger than it. The small body contrasts this but doesn't offer much space for arms so I put them where they would fit - on the sides of the head. As such it makes his head look like a hunched torso but I'm okay with that, because it will lend itself to a "reveal" at a later time. The roller skates and fez (which hides a propeller) is a hark back to the "fez monkeys" which were Prime-8s who carried sharp weapons so the current Prime-8 also wields a giant pizza cutter. Unfortunately this retooling effectively retires Decoy: [link] (who was actually redesigned a while ago) and General Kibosh, a character whose name and rough design may still be implemented in some way in the future.

PRIME-9 Intended as a direct upgrade to Prime-8, Prime-9 does not specialise in one particular field and is probably the most versatile Prime there is. Robust and agile, each limb features opposable digits, making it possible to wield any and all weaponry in hands or feet. Also well versed in piloting vehicles, there may be nothing Nine can't do!

PRIME-10 It's all well and good for Two and Three to fix and maintain other robots, but who will fix and maintain Professor Fandango? The answer is Prime-10. His hands hide a number of surgical tools and though he's quite short, he can be taller by walking on his hands, which allows access to his feet which are also defibrillator plates. Loosely based on an orangutan, Prime-10 originally had four arms!

PRIME-11 The Reaper. Usually hidden below decks in the Mechanical Meltdown Zone, anybody who spots Eleven stalking through the main Lab is instilled with a sense of fear. Eleven's job is to neutralise malfunctioning or disillusioned robots and take them down to the trash compactors and smelting pots for processing. He does this by deactivating them with his EMP gun and using his tail to drop them into his cage torso. Any robot too large to fit through the cage hatch will be carved up into pieces that will. It's pretty gruesome!

PRIME-12 If you recall I mentioned how Prime-5 was eventually outranked in firepower then you'll understand that this is the culprit. A massive weapons battery, Prime-12 shoot rockets from his right shoulder, slashes with the buzzsaws on his left wrist and wields two electric knives (the handles are showing underneath his torso) His large frame also houses a number of more concealed weapons, making his a devastating enemy. Of course this comes at a price as it makes his relatively slow and cumbersome, though his gorilla inspiration does go some way to rectifying this. He also holds Prime-5 in
extremely high esteem, as he is somewhat of an ancestor.

PRIME-13 Hidden somewhere in the bowels of Fandango Labs is Prime-13, the vast data repository. His brain contains information of all the workings of the Labs, almost all of which can be controlled remotely. Has no direct means of attack but can create holographic doppelgangers of himself and can emit a special wave with which to resurrect deactivated robots, albeit at limited capacity. Formerly Prime-15 but the old designs for Thirteen and Fourteen don't really have a place in this new iteration. Moreover, Thirteen rarely acts as vizier to Fandango as he had previously done, acting more as an all-seeing eye and library bot, but still an important role and invaluable consultant.