Star Harvester

Honeycomb's big—yeah, yeah, yeah.

When theAllSparkruns low on energy, only the destruction of a star can replenish it. In order to harness the power of stars,workersin service to the AllSpark built great machines calledStar Harvesters.

Fiction

Live-action film series

IDW movie comics

And no one on Earth discovered this for millions of years.

In the distant past, the mysterious relic known as the AllSpark cube created life on the planetCybertronand terraformed its surface to make the world suitable for habitation for its creations, theThirteen Primes.However, this effort depleted the AllSpark, and the power from a star was the one thing that could re-energize it. The Thirteen could travel dimensions, but they needed help locating stars and properly utilizing stellar energy. The cube created a servant race of transforming workers who would seek out stars and build devices called Star Harvesters to aid in collecting the solar energy. The Thirteen ruled these "Transformers"with their descendants, known as theDynasty of Primes,protecting Cybertron and the AllSpark while exploring the galaxy and searching for stars to harvest. The Primes recognized that the Star Harvesters could have devastating consequences for worlds without stars, so they set out with a single rule: Never take a star from a life-giving world. To further prevent misuse, the Primes guarded theMatrix of Leadershipcreated by the AllSpark, which would serve as the key for the Harvesters.

One "Seeker"discovereda suitable starfor their purpose and led his masters and thebuildersto thethird planetof its star system. The builders constructed the Harvester and prepared to drain the Sun's energy, but it was discovered that this world contained life. Twelve of the Primes refused to utilize the Harvester, for the process would destroy this world. However, the remaining being felt no such obligation to protect life and merely wanted all of the AllSpark's energy for himself. The Prime killed eleven of his brothers, but the last stole the Matrix and hid it in a tomb. The rogue Prime, now known asThe Fallen,then returned to Cybertron and destroyed the rest of the Dynasty, along with thesarcophagiof his brothers to prevent their return, but he expended much of his energy and withdrew to his own sarcophagus to heal. It was here that he discovered that his twelve brothers could still act, for they sealed him in his sarcophagus. The Dynasty of Primes passed into the realm of myth, while the Harvester left on Earth was eventually hidden by thenative sentient inhabitants.WhenOptimus Primelaunched the AllSpark into space, the Cube began searching for a planet with a Harvester.Defiance #4Revenge of the Fallen #3

Thousands of years later,Decepticonsunder the command ofSoundwavearrived on Earth in search of the Harvester.Alliance #2

Revenge of the Fallenfilm

TheSeven Primescame toEartharound 17,000 BC. Although they had sworn never to take a life in their pursuit ofenergon,one of their kind hated thehumaninhabitants of the planet and was going to activate the Great Machine until his brothers stopped him by stealing theMatrix of Leadershipneeded to power it. They sealed it in atombmade of their own bodies.

And historians, archaeologists and treasure seekers across the world go nuts.

In 2009 AD,The FallenPrime returned to Earth, seeking to use his machine two years after theAllSpark's apparent destruction.Sam Witwickyuncovered the tomb and recovered the Matrix, which he intended to use to resurrectOptimus Prime,the only one who could kill The Fallen.Devastatorexcavated the machine from theGreat Pyramid of Gizabefore he was destroyed, and The Fallen snatched the Matrix to activate his machine, but Optimus had returned, and he combined withJetfireto destroy the Harvester.Revenge of the Fallen

The Last Knightfilm

The remains of the machine along with theGreat Pyramid of Gizawere destroyed by a moving fragment ofCybertronwhen it crashed into the pyramid.The Last Knight

2005 IDW continuity

A team led bySkyquakewas sent to theSkomiloch Territoriesto put down local resistance to the Decepticons' solar-harvesting efforts.Snare's personnel evaluation

Beast Wars: Uprising

The Book of Logos mentioned a Prime finding "both Cube and Harvester" on the third planet of an unidentified system.Derailment

Delugecited the Star Harvester as being one of the historical examples of Cybertronians being "noisy".The Inexorable March

Games

Transformers: Battle for the Matrix

Ancient Egyptian Laser Beams!

Transformers: Battle for the Matrix

Revenge of the Fallenmobile game

The Decepticons sought the Matrix of Leadership so they could reactivate the "Great Machine".Revenge of the Fallen (Glu)

Notes

• The Star Harvester is never actually referred to by name in theRevenge of the Fallenmovie or any of the films released after it. It is only ever referred to, by Jetfire, as "a great machine", "that deadly machine", or simply "that machine". Likewise, the movie'snovelizationnames it as the "Great Machine",uppercased properly like so. The more formal name of" Star Harvester "originates from the tie-in comics released forRevenge of the FallenbyIDW Publishing.
• Yeah, it's the same idea as theGeneration 1 cartoon'sSolar Needle.That doesn't make it a reference!