Origin
The Quintessons once worked for Unicron by searching the galaxy for the whereabouts of Primus. Instead however, they saw the chance to use Primus’ power for profit. They moved onto Cybertron and created barriers between the power of Primus and the “children” it sought to protect. After various failed attempts at trying to control Primus, the Quintessons began attempting to control Cybertron itself, and with it Vector Sigma, “the ultimate physical embodiment” of Primus. A shell program was created to conceal Vector Sigma’s power and guidance from its creations, thereby making Cybertron into a profitable enterprise. The Quintessons who’d controlled Vector Sigma warned their superiors of Primus’ true power, and were subsequently banished through space and time for their insolence, Al-Badur among them.
Major Story Arcs
Madman’s Paradise (Transformers G1 Cartoon)
After the Autobots discovered a secret chamber in Cybertron’s Planetary Corridor CB-311-B4, Rewind examined the hieroglyphics there and learned that the room had been once used by the Quintessons to banish their criminals (the few that weren’t executed) to other dimensions. The writings recorded there listed the fate of various criminals, and stated that Al-Badur had been banished to an ice dimension
Disclosure
After a devastating betrayal on the planet Akalo by Cyclonus, Primal Prime led the Wreckers to a distant, ice world that the Oracle had guided him to. There the Wreckers were surprised to find Al-Badur. Although most of the Wreckers were wary of the Quintesson, Primal Prime allowed him to explain himself.
Al-Badur detailed at length the history of the Quintessons on Cybertron, as well as how this intertwined with Primus, the creation of Cybertron’s people, Vector Sigma, and how Al-Badur had long anticipated the rebellion of Cybertron’s people against the Quintessons. Primal Prime and Apelinq then realized that the Oracle, which had sent the Wreckers on their quest in the first place, was in fact the shell program that the Quintessons had installed on Vector Sigma millions of years ago in order to control it.
This realization shocked the Wreckers to their core, but they had little time to dwell on it as they were suddenly attacked by Sharkticons. They seemed to be after Al-Badur, and so the Wreckers reluctantly fought to protect him from the attack. After the battle and despite various protests from some of the Wreckers, Al-Badur was escorted off the planet by them in the hopes that he would be able to shed light on any remaining mysteries, such as the importance of their primary target – the Divine Light – the artifact that Cyclonus had betrayed them for.
Wreckers: Finale
Realizing that the Oracle’s primary goal had been to rid Cybertron of possible defenders, the Wreckers turned their ship around and headed home as fast as they could. They arrived just as the Quintesson invasion was reaching its peak. Al-Badur assured everyone though that Quintesson plans were ultimately predictable and pedestrian, and that whatever Cryotek was planning with the Divine Light would have to be their true focus.
Sure enough, Cryotek had used Primus’ power from the Divine Light to transform himself into a god-like being, and only a similar transformation that merged Apelinq and Primal Prime into Sentinel Maximus gave the Wreckers a fighting chance against Cryotek now. At Al-Badur’s directions, Sentinel Maximus led Cryotek into a Quintesson “execution chamber.” The chamber was actually though the banishing chamber that had been used on Al-Badur by his brethren ages ago, and he sought to use it to get rid of both his enemies and supposed allies in one fell swoop. While the Wreckers kept Cryotek in place, Al-Badur was about to activate the room’s containment field and send them all through the portal, but Arcee‘s memory of a similar Autobot adventure in the past alerted her of Al-Badur’s treachery soon enough for her to get everyone but Sentinel Maximus and Cryotek off the transportation platform in time.
With the containment field preventing the Wreckers from saving Sentinel Maximus, Al-Badur cackled gleefully as he revealed his plan to take Primus’ power for himself, getting rid of Cryotek in a nether-dimension in order to draw Unicron‘s eye away from his efforts, and thereby giving him the time to turn Cybertron into a weapon capable of defeating Unicron when he returned. Al-Badur’s victory was certain. That is until Ramulus arrived at the chamber and happily bashed the traitorous Quintesson into the containment field and through the now-active portal, which sucked Al-Badur into the void-like nether-dimension where his form broke down and disintegrated into nothingness.
Powers & Abilities
Both as a Quintesson and a scientist, Al-Badur’s skills are primarily his intellect. He has extensive knowledge of Cybertronian history, and is also knowledgeable in deception like virtually all Quintessons.
He can levitate partially off the ground under his own power and has extensive longevity like most Quintessons and Cybertronians. He also has multiple tentacle-like appendages with metallic claws which could probably be used offensively if he so chose.