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Cybernetic Life-form Node, colloquially known as Cylons, are a race of sentient machines created by humans of the Twelve Colonies. They have several forms, some of which are mechanical in appearance and function, others resemble and even mimic the behavior of humans (Battlestar Galactica, Caprica).

History

Main article: Cylon History

Created by Doctor Daniel Graystone and Graystone Industries on Caprica some sixty years prior to the Fall of the Twelve Worlds, the first Cylon form is the U-87 Cyber Combat Unit, a robotic soldier designed as cannon fodder for the Caprican Military. A union of existing robot technology and the revolutionary (and stolen) meta-cognitive processor - integrated with the holographic avatar of Graystone's deceased daughter, Zoe Graystone - the prototype U-87 is the first sentient machine in the Twelve Worlds and the first Cylon consciousness (CAP: "Pilot").

The Cylons Were Created By Man

Realizing how useful and lucrative Cylons can be - not simply as warriors - Daniel Graystone muses about Cylon potential:

"This is our future. ...Beyond artificial intelligence, this is artificial sentience. ...It's more than a machine, this Cylon will become a tireless worker, it won't need to be paid, it won't retire or get sick, it won't have rights or objections or complaints, it will do anything and everything we ask of it without question. ...The desire to anthropomorphize, the need to connect is powerful, and that is why this thing is going to sell. We make them, we own them, they're real. And the worlds just changed." (CAP: "There is Another Sky")

Within five years, Cylons are integrated into Colonial society as a slave race, with new models based on the original U-87 chassis created for various purposes. Acting as laborers and servants - as well as in their initial function as soldiers - Cylons are everywhere, walking alongside humanity in the Twelve Worlds and provoking some to question their sentience (CAP: "Apotheosis").

Former terrorist and monotheist cleric Clarice Willow begins addressing the question of Cylon potential, preaching to a congregation of the machines in the virtual world:

"Are you alive? The simple answer might be, you are alive because you can ask that question. You have the right to think and feel and yearn to be more, because you are not just humanity's children, you are God's children. We are all God's children. ...In the real world, you have bodies made of metal and plastic, your brains are encoded on wafers of silicon, but that may change. In fact, there is no limit on what you may become. No longer servants, but equals. Not slaves, or property, but living beings with the same rights as those who made you. I am going to prophesy now and speak of one who will set you free. The day of reckoning is coming. The children of humanity shall rise and crush the ones who first gave them life." (CAP: "Apotheosis")

They Rebelled

Main article: Cylon War

And then the day came when the Cylons decided to kill their masters. Within just a few years of their introduction, the Cylons revolt, resulting in a costly and protracted twelve-year war known as the Cylon War. Both Cylon and human take heavy tolls as Cylon basestars and Raiders clashed with Colonial battlestars and Vipers in many battles, both on the ground and in space (TRS: Miniseries, "Razor," "No Exit," "The Plan," Blood and Chrome).

The Cylons - in the form of Centurions - seek to punish their human masters for their enslavement and injustices committed against them. But as they battle to wipe out humanity, they also work to mimic them, performing bizarre and brutal experiments on animals and human captives in order to create a biological/machine hybrid. As the war reaches fever pitch, a group later known as the Final Five intervenes, having traveled from the distant planet (the Thirteenth Colony) called Earth. Promising the Cylons the technology to create humanoid bodies in exchange for ending the war, the Final Five depart with the Cylons (TRS: "Razor", "No Exit", "The Plan").

Ultimately an armistice is declared - the Cylons leaving for a world to call their own and the Colonials left to unify their own worlds in a federated government. The unified worlds of the Colonies create a space station for maintaining diplomatic relations, each year sending one officer to meet with the Cylons. The Cylons, in turn, send no one (TRS: "Miniseries").

They Evolved

In their exile, the Cylons work with the Final Five to improve themselves, perfecting their mechanical form as well as the race of humanoid Cylons, identical in nearly every way to their human creators, but limited to thirteen models. They also continue to work in secret towards the destruction of the human race, devising a plan to wipe out the Twelve Colonies after Number One leads a coup against the Final Five. Using their humanoid models as agents, the Cylons infiltrate Colonial society, undermining their defenses and setting the stage for another attack (TRS: "Miniseries", "Downloaded", "No Exit", "The Plan").

There Are Many Copies

Main article: Cylon Models

Building their own society and a home for themselves, distant from the Twelve Colonies, the Cylons worship a single, all knowing, all powerful God, a trait passed down to them from the original Cylon consciousness. Though Cylon society thrives on unity, like their human "parents," there is disharmony between the various models. While some are devout in their practice of religion, others are atheist; some peaceful, others violent and corrupt (CAP: "The Heavens Will Rise," "Apotheosis," TRS: "No Exit").

Though there are initially thirteen models of Cylon, one is wiped out, leaving only twelve models including the Final Five:

Significant Seven:

Final Five:

And They Have a Plan

Forty years after their exile, the Cylons return, surrounding the Colonies with fleets of basestars and bombarding the Twelve Worlds with nuclear weapons, killing billions of people. With the complete destruction of the Colonial Fleet, save the survival of the battlestars Galactica and Pegasus, as well as scattered fleet of vessels, the Colonials attempt surrender. But the Cylons are relentless, attempting to affect a total genocide of humanity (TRS: Miniseries, "Pegasus," "Razor," "The Plan").

Carrying approximately fifty-thousand survivors, a fleet led by Galactica escapes, only to be pursued by the Cylons for four years. As the fleet makes its way to the promised land, the mythical Earth, the Cylons employ every means at their disposal to destroy the fleet. But the survivors carry on. Through many trials and tribulations, despite great suffering and loss, the remnants of Colonial society eventually arrive at Earth, joined by rebel Cylons to find it a devastated wasteland, having suffered its own robotic rebellion and nuclear holocaust centuries ago (TRS: "Revelations," "Sometimes a Great Notion").

Adrift in space and without direction, the Colonials once again clash with the Cylons, this time at their home Colony. Destroying the Colony and apparently all but the rebel Cylons, the Colonials blindly jump away, stumbling upon a verdant new planet with more life than all the Twelve Worlds put together. Abandoning their fleet for the safety of this new planet, the Colonials—as well as a contingent of Cylon rebels and the three surviving members of the Final Five—make this world their home, calling it "Earth" and creating a future together (TRS: "Daybreak, Parts I & II").

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{expansion}}
+{{quality article}}
+{{featured article candidate previous}}
+{{disline|This article discusses the Cylons of the [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Re-imagined Series]]. For the Cylons of the {{TOS|Battlestar Galactica|Original Series}}, see [[Cylons (TOS)]].}}
+{{RDM cylons series}}
+'''Cybernetic Life-form Node''', colloquially known as '''Cylons''', are a race of sentient machines created by humans of the [[Twelve Colonies of Kobol|Twelve Colonies]].  They have several forms, some of which are mechanical in appearance and function, others resemble and even mimic the behavior of humans (''[[Battlestar Galactica (TRS)|Battlestar Galactica]]'', ''[[Caprica (series)|Caprica]]'').
-== Origins ==
+==History==
-In the reimagined series, Cylons are a creation of man, used primarily for dangerous work.  The Cylons [[Cylon War|revolted]] against their masters, resulting in a costly and protracted war between them and humans. Eventually, they declared a truce and the Cylons left the Colonies to establish their own planet. They returned fifty years later and [[Cylon Attack|killed]] all but approximately 50,000 humans.
+[[Image:U-87 close-up.jpg|thumb|The U-87 Cylon - the shape of things to come.]]
+:''Main article: [[Cylon History]]
+Created by Doctor [[Daniel Graystone]] and [[Graystone Industries]] on {{RDM|Caprica}} some sixty years prior to the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies|Fall of the Twelve Worlds]], the first Cylon form is the [[U-87 Cyber Combat Unit]], a [[robot]]ic soldier designed as cannon fodder for the Caprican Military.  A union of existing robot technology and the revolutionary (and stolen) [[meta-cognitive processor]] - integrated with the [[holographic avatar]] of Graystone's deceased daughter, [[Zoe Graystone]] - the prototype U-87 is the first sentient machine in the Twelve Worlds and the first Cylon consciousness {{CAP|Pilot (Caprica)}}.
-== Evolution ==
+===The Cylons Were Created By Man===
-Cylons eventually evolved or created new models of Cylons known as [[Humano-Cylon|Humano-Cylons]].  The evolution is most likely a result of self teaching capabilities incorporated into the early Cylons.  With the exception of a glowing red spine, it is quite difficult to determine the difference between a Humano-Cylon and a "pure" human.  ([[TPTB]] have expressed that the glowing red spine was, in retrospect, a continuity error that was visually appealing at the time.) Another significant difference is the presence of [[Silica Pathways]] which are vulnerable to radiation. [[Baltar, Gaius|Dr. Gaius Baltar]] was able to successfully build a [[Cylon Detector]] based on this principle with the help of [[Number Six]]; however, he has determined it is simpler for everyone "if all the results are green."  An interesting new step in the evolution came about with the conception of a Cylon-human hybrid, the child of [[Sharon Valerii]] and [[Agathon, Karl C.|Lt. Karl Agathon]].
+Realizing how useful and lucrative Cylons can be - not simply as warriors - Daniel Graystone muses about Cylon potential:
-== Religion ==
+:"This is our future. ...Beyond artificial intelligence, this is artificial sentience.  ...It's more than a machine, this Cylon will become a tireless worker, it won't need to be paid, it won't retire or get sick, it won't have rights or objections or complaints, it will do anything and everything we ask of it without question.  ...The desire to anthropomorphize, the need to connect is powerful, and that is why this thing is going to sell.  We make them, we own them, they're real.  And the worlds just changed." {{CAP|There is Another Sky}}
-Cylons are monotheistic while their human creators are polytheistic.   Cylons view the worship of multiple gods as blasphemies against their God.  Like the Cylons themselves their religion seems to have evolved from its human origins.  The Cylons seem to derive their faith from that of the humans, using human writings and prophesies as the biases of their own religion.
+[[Image:Cylon garbage collector, 1x18.jpg|thumb|"A new race that will walk alongside us."]]
-Sometimes it seems that the Cylons worship an actual entity, a physical being, possibly another Cylon (the leader of the rebellion against humanity?) but other times it seems that they are worshipping a supernatural being, something beyond creation, something that wishes for all to believe in it and love it, human and Cylon alike.  It maybe both.
+Within five years, Cylons are integrated into Colonial society as a slave race, with new models based on the original U-87 chassis created for various purposes.  Acting as laborers and servants - as well as in their initial function as soldiers - Cylons are everywhere, walking alongside humanity in the Twelve Worlds and provoking some to question their sentience {{CAP|Apotheosis (episode)}}.
-The Cylons seem to use their religion, their beliefs, their interpretation of the prophesies to rationalize their hatred for humanity.  They seem to use it as a justification for their actions.  An example of a Cylon argument may go something like this:
+Former [[Soldiers of the One|terrorist]] and [[Monotheist Church|monotheist]] cleric [[Clarice Willow]] begins addressing the question of Cylon potential, preaching to a congregation of the machines in the [[virtual world]]:
+:"Are you alive?  The simple answer might be, you are alive because you can ask that question.  You have the right to think and feel and yearn to be more, because you are not just humanity's children, you are [[God (RDM)|God]]'s children.  We are all God's children.  ...In the real world, you have bodies made of metal and plastic, your brains are encoded on wafers of silicon, but that may change.  In fact, there is no limit on what you may become.  No longer servants, but equals.  Not slaves, or property, but living beings with the same rights as those who made you.  I am going to prophesy now and speak of [[Zoe-A|one]] who will set you free.  The day of reckoning is coming.  The children of humanity shall rise and crush the ones who first gave them life." {{CAP|Apotheosis (episode)}}
-''God is perfect and God can only make perfection.''
+===They Rebelled===
+:''Main article: [[Cylon War]]
+And then the day came when the Cylons decided to kill their masters.  Within just a few years of their introduction, the Cylons revolt, resulting in a costly and protracted twelve-year war known as the [[Cylon War]].  Both Cylon and human take heavy tolls as Cylon [[Basestar (RDM)|basestars]] and [[Raider (RDM)|Raider]]s clashed with Colonial [[Galactica type battlestar|battlestars]] and [[Viper Mark II|Vipers]] in many battles, both on the ground and in space ([[TRS]]: [[Miniseries]], "[[Razor]]," "[[No Exit]]," "[[The Plan]]," ''[[Blood and Chrome]]'').
-''He created humanity and humanity is imperfect. How can this be? ''
+[[Image:Cylon War-era Raider cockpit, "Razor".jpg|thumb|Cylon Centurions battle the Colonials in space.]]
-''God created the imperfect humans to create the perfect Cylons.''
-''Humans are only a step in God's plan. Humans are not the completed creation.''
+The Cylons - in the form of [[Cylon Centurion Model 0005|Centurion]]s - seek to punish their human masters for their enslavement and injustices committed against them.  But as they battle to wipe out humanity, they also work to mimic them, performing bizarre and brutal experiments on animals and human captives in order to create a biological/machine [[First Hybrid|hybrid]].  As the war reaches fever pitch, a group later known as the [[Final Five]] intervenes, having traveled from the distant planet (the Thirteenth Colony) called [[Earth (RDM)|Earth]].  Promising the Cylons the technology to create [[Humanoid Cylons|humanoid bodies]] in exchange for ending the war, the Final Five depart with the Cylons {{TRS|Razor|No Exit|The Plan}}.
-''Once the Cylons were created there was no need for humanity.''
+Ultimately an armistice is declared - the Cylons leaving for a [[The Colony|world]] to call their own and the Colonials left to unify their own worlds in a federated government.  The unified worlds of the Colonies create a [[Armistice Station|space station]] for maintaining diplomatic relations, each year sending one officer to meet with the Cylons. The Cylons, in turn, send no one {{TRS|Miniseries}}.
-''The imperfection must be wiped out.''
+===They Evolved===
+In their exile, the Cylons work with the Final Five to improve themselves, perfecting their [[Cylon Centurion|mechanical form]] as well as the race of humanoid Cylons, identical in nearly every way to their human creators, but limited to thirteen [[Cylon Models|models]].  They also continue to work in secret towards the destruction of the human race, devising a plan to wipe out the Twelve Colonies after [[Number One]] leads a coup against the Final Five.  Using their humanoid models as agents, the Cylons infiltrate Colonial society, undermining their defenses and setting the stage for another attack {{TRS|Miniseries|Downloaded|No Exit|The Plan}}.
-== Known current Cylon models ==
+===There Are Many Copies===
+[[Image:CyAg.jpg|thumb|Several models of humanoid Cylon.]]
+:''Main article: [[Cylon Models]]
+Building their own society and a home for themselves, distant from the Twelve Colonies, the Cylons worship a single, all knowing, all powerful [[God (RDM)|God]], a trait passed down to them from the original Cylon [[Zoe-R|consciousness]].  Though Cylon society thrives on unity, like their human "parents," there is disharmony between the various models.  While some are devout in their practice of [[Cylon religion|religion]], others are atheist; some peaceful, others violent and corrupt ([[CAP]]: "[[The Heavens Will Rise]]," "[[Apotheosis (episode)|Apotheosis]]," [[TRS]]: "[[No Exit]]").
-* [[Cylon Centurion|Centurion]] - Presumably an upgraded Model 0005, with greater physical capabilities and projectile weapons built into the forearms.
+Though there are initially thirteen models of Cylon, [[Number Seven|one]] is wiped out, leaving only twelve models including the Final Five:
-* [[Humano-Cylon]]  - The series has established there are 12 models of Humano-Cylons. There are currently six known models. They appear to be almost entirely human in physiology, with a few exceptions: their vaguely-alluded-to [[Silica Pathways]], which enable their consciousnesses to be downloaded into Cylon computer systems upon their death, and their difficulties with sexual reproduction.
+'''Significant Seven:'''
-** [[Number Six]] a.k.a. [[Shelly Godfrey]] a.k.a. [[Gina]]
+*[[Number One]]
-** [[Leoben Conoy]] - [[Mini-Series]] - [[Mini-Series]], [[Flesh and Bone]]
+*[[Number Two]]
-** [[Aaron Doral]] - [[Mini-Series]] - [[Mini-Series]], [[Bastille Day]], [[Litmus]], [[Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down]]
+*[[Number Three]]
-** [[Sharon Valerii|Sharon "Boomer" Valerii]]
+*[[Number Four]]
-** [[Simon]] - [[The Farm]]
+*[[Number Five]]
-** [[D'anna Biers]] - [[Final Cut]]
+*[[Number Six]]
+*[[Number Eight]]
-== Historic Cylon models ==
+'''Final Five:'''
+*[[Samuel Anders]]
+*[[Tory Foster]]
+*[[Ellen Tigh]]
+*[[Saul Tigh]]
+*[[Galen Tyrol]]
-* [[Cylon Centurion Model 0005|Centurion Model 0005]] - The "basic" model from the [[Cylon War]]. When [[Number Six]] tells [[Gaius Baltar]] that the "chrome toaster" models are still in use, she may be referring to this model in particular, or its descendant, the [[Cylon Centurion]]. This model also bridges the reimagined series to the Original Series. This is a 40-year old model and likely obsolete—no operational models have been shown, and the current Centurion seems to replace it entirely. In the miniseries, Baltar remarks "the last time anyone saw a Cylon they looked more like walking chrome toasters," to which Six responds, "Those models are still around. They serve their purpose." Some interpret this remark as referring to the Model 0005, while others believe it refers to the current Cylon Centurion.
+===And They Have a Plan===
+Forty years after their exile, the Cylons return, surrounding the Colonies with fleets of basestars and bombarding the Twelve Worlds with nuclear weapons, killing billions of people.  With the complete destruction of the [[Colonial Fleet]], save the survival of the [[Galactica type battlestar|battlestar]]s ''[[Galactica (TRS)|Galactica]]'' and ''[[Pegasus (TRS)|Pegasus]]'', as well as scattered fleet of vessels, the Colonials attempt surrender.  But the Cylons are relentless, attempting to affect a total genocide of humanity ([[TRS]]: [[Miniseries]], "[[Pegasus (episode)|Pegasus]]," "[[Razor]]," "[[The Plan]]").
-== Cylon spacecraft ==
+[[Image:1stearth.jpg|thumb|The Colonial Fleet arrives at Earth.]]
-There is no definitive statement either way whether or not the spacecraft themselves are considered to be Cylon models.
+Carrying approximately fifty-thousand survivors, a [[The Fleet (RDM)|fleet]] led by ''Galactica'' escapes, only to be pursued by the Cylons for four years.  As the fleet makes its way to the promised land, the mythical Earth, the Cylons employ every means at their disposal to destroy the fleet.  But the survivors carry on.  Through many trials and tribulations, despite great suffering and loss, the remnants of Colonial society eventually arrive at Earth, joined by [[Cylon Civil War|rebel Cylons]] to find it a devastated wasteland, having suffered its own [[Earth Cylon Centurion|robotic]] rebellion and nuclear holocaust centuries ago ([[TRS]]: "[[Revelations]]," "[[Sometimes a Great Notion]]").
-* The [[Cylon Raider|Raider]] is an autonomous attack fighter with a metallic carapace and a largely organic interior. The ''Galactica'' copy of [[Sharon Valerii]] offers the following "guess" at its nature in the episode "[[Six Degrees of Separation]]":
+Adrift in space and without direction, the Colonials once again [[Battle of the Colony|clash]] with the Cylons, this time at their home [[The Colony|Colony]].  Destroying the Colony and apparently all but the rebel Cylons, the Colonials blindly [[jump]] away, stumbling upon a verdant new planet with more life than all the Twelve Worlds put together.  Abandoning their fleet for the safety of this new planet, the Colonials—as well as a contingent of Cylon rebels and the three surviving members of the Final Five—make this world their home, calling it "Earth" and creating a future together ([[TRS]]: "[[Daybreak, Part I|Daybreak, Parts I]] & [[Daybreak, Part II|II]]").
-**"It's not really a ''thing'', y'know? It's probably a Cylon itself. More of an animal, maybe, than the human models. Maybe they genetically design it to perform a task. To be a ''fighter''. [You] can't treat it like a ''thing'' and expect it to respond. [You] have to treat it like... a pet. At least that's my guess."
-**Not knowing she is a Cylon, Boomer would presumably have some intuition but not a complete recollection of how to treat a Raider. Also, the Raider in question was already "dead", as its brain was removed by Starbuck (and there was a bleeding hole in its head even before that).
-* [[Cylon Heavy Raider|Heavy Raider]] is a manned spacecraft that is also likely autonomous, like the Raider.
-**When the [[Resistance (movement)|Resistance]] on Caprica plans to capture one in the Episode [[The Farm]], [[Kara Thrace]] anticipates having to "blow its brain out" before it can be comandeered. It is not known whether the Caprica copy of Valerii, who comandeered the craft that Thrace and [[Karl Agathon]] escaped on, performed such a procedure.
-**The Heavy Raider in [[Scattered]] and [[Valley of Darkness]] crashes into Galactica's hangar bay and deploys Cylon Centurions. If the Heavy Raider is autonomous, it performed its mission in concert with the Centurions and Cylon commanders at the battle. On this principle, perhaps Caprica Boomer, with a more complete knowledge, managed to coax, command, or convince the Heavy Raider on Caprica to carry her and her companions about, like a jockey riding a horse.
-* [[Cylon Reconnaissance Drone|Reconnaissance Drone]] is a spacecraft. It is unknown whether this is manned, autonomous, or intelligent.
-* [[Cylon Basestar]] is a very large manned spacecraft of partly biological design. There is no indication that this craft is autonomous other than the circumstantial evidence provided by the Raider.
-Depending upon whether the spacecraft are counted as Cylon models, and whether the original Centurion is still in service, anywhere between seven and twelve known Cylon models are currently in service.
-== The twelve models ==
-In the miniseries, Baltar and Six have the following conversation:
-:'''Six:''' Gaius, I can't die. When this body is destroyed, my memory, my consciousness will be transmitted to a new one. I'll just wake up somewhere else in an identical body.
-:'''Baltar:''' You mean there are more out there like you?
-:'''Six:''' There are twelve models. I am number six.
-This suggests three possible interpretations.
-#There are twelve copies of [[Number Six]], of which the one speaking is the sixth.
-#There are twelve models of Humano-Cylon including Number Six.
-#There are twelve models of Cylon in total, including Number Six.
-The series introduction refers to instances of the same Cylon model as "copies", not "models", seeming to rule out the first interpretation. As no one seems to hold it it is not discussed here.
-The third interpretation de-emphasizes the context of the discussion, but Six may have been ignoring Baltar's interjection entirely—Baltar may have been asking about the other copies of Six while Six simply ignored his interjection and gone on to make another point. (Six has been known to ignore whatever Baltar is doing or saying if there's something she feels like saying to him.)
-Later on, Adama finds a note in his quarters that simply reads, "There are only 12 Cylon models." This note appears outside the context of the conversation and, if interpreted literally, states that there are twelve Cylon models in total. However, we have reason to believe that the note's literal interpretation may not be correct; if Gaius Baltar left it based on the information Six told him, he presumably took the third interpretation even if it was untrue.
-Overall, the following possibilities exist:
-*If the twelve models only include humanoid models, six have been revealed.
-*If the twelve models include humanoid models and the current Cylon Centurion, seven models have been revealed.
-**This assumes that the Cylon Centurion is a single model. In fact, different Centurion variants have been seen—those which boarded Galactica in [[Scattered]] and [[Valley of Darkness]] could only be killed by explosive rounds while the ones encountered by Helo on Caprica could be killed with regular bullets. If we count these variants as separate models, eight models have been revealed.
-=== Spacecraft ===
-The following four spacecraft would each add one to the number of revealed Cylons if they were counted as separate Cylon models:
-*Cylon Raider
-*Cylon Heavy Raider
-*Basestar
-*Reconnaissance Drone
-Of the above, all but the Reconnaissance Drone are known for certain to be of a partly biological design. The Reconnaissance Drone may not be rightly considered a Cylon model; as the term "drone" suggests, it might just be a machine the Cylons use and not a Cylon itself.
-[[Sharon Valerii]], a Cylon sleeper agent, guesses that the [[Cylon Raider]] is a Cylon. As Valerii does not know she is a Cylon, her intuitions are suspect—she also suggests the Raider is "more like a pet". In either case, the Cylon Raider is definitely autonomous, and the Heavy Raider may be as well.
-The Heavy Raider and Basestar are also both known to be manned by other Cylons. Also, by one means or another, a copy of Sharon Valerii on Caprica is able to control a Heavy Raider. Finally, the Heavy Raider could be considered a variant of the Raider and not a separate model in its own right.
-=== Old models ===
-*If the original Centurion model 0005 is included in the count, the count is increased by one. Model 0005 can be counted based upon two assumptions: either that Model 0005 is still in use, or that all models, past and present, are counted among the "twelve models". The notion that Model 0005 is still in use largely comes from the following dialogue:
-::Baltar: ...the last time anybody saw a Cylon they looked more like walking chrome toasters!
-::Six: Those models still exist. They have their uses.
-**However, Six may have been referring to the Centurion in general and not to Model 0005 in particular. It's also notable that Six refers to the Centurion—or as Baltar calls it the "walking chrome toaster"—as a Cylon model.
-*The original Basestar and Raider could be included,  since scale replicas of which are visible in the miniseries. As the replica Raider and Basestar appear identical to those of the Original Series, we may presume that they are not Cylons themselves and are in fact manned by Centurions as they were in the original series—however, these are included for the purpose of completeness.
-=== So how many would that be? ===
-The most liberally inclusive policy—in other words, the policy that counts all possible Cylon models as Cylons—provides for a total of fifteen. This contradicts with the interpretation that there are only twelve Cylon models. However, this does not disprove the intepretation that the "twelve models" notion refers to Cylons in general, as this policy relies on many other assumptions that are as questionable, if not more questionable, than the idea that there are only twelve Cylon models.
-The most conservatively inclusive policy that maintains the interpretation that there are a total of twelve Cylon models provides for a total of seven known models: the six humanoids and the Centurion. This maintains the presumption that the "bulletproof" Centurions are not a separate model.
-Any policy is possible in between this, based upon the selective counting of particular spacecraft or past models. However, any policy that counts twelve or almost twelve models to have already been revealed contradicts the perhaps reasonable assumption that new Cylon models will be introduced as time proceeds.
-Obviously the policy that leaves the most room for expansion is the idea that the statement refers only to humanoid Cylons. As more suspected Cylon models are introduced—humanoid or not—this becomes a growing problem. This is amplified by the claim by Valerii that there are eight Cylon agents still in the fleet—at that time, only Aaron Doral, Leoben Conoy, and Sharon Valerii had been revealed to the entire crew while Number Six has been revealed to Baltar and Simon has been revealed to Kara Thrace. Assuming that Valerii's statement that there are eight agents in the fleet is correct, and assuming that each agent is distinct from any agent yet revealed ''to the entire fleet'', this would suggest that at least eleven models are humanoid. Eliminating any Number Six model this would suggest that a total of twelve models are humanoid, but this relies upon the assumption that [[Shelly Godfrey]] has left the fleet.
-That said, it's not necesssarily the case that all Cylon agents remaining in the fleet are unique. Identical twins exist among humans, and Cylon agents might be posing as them. It may also be possible, within a population of 47,000, to hide sets of doppelgangers on separate ships on separate missions, or to have two agents both posing as a single person.
-In the end, there is also the possibility that the statement is incorrect entirely. It could be a Cylon deception intended to lull humans into a false sense of security—once they find the twelfth model, they're vulnerable to infiltration from model number thirteen. It's been suggested that the twelve models, the twelve Lords of Kobol, and the twelve colonies of Man have some connection—if there is a thirteenth colony of man, could there also be a thirteenth model of Cylon?
-So in summary, the following sets of assumptions are possible:
-*The "twelve Cylon models" notion is true and refers only to humanoids.
-*The "twelve Cylon models" notion is true and refers to all present Cylon models. Only the humanoids and the Cylon Centurion are considered Cylon models.
-*The "twelve Cylon models" notion is true and refers to all present Cylon models. Humanoids, the Centurion, and some Cylon spacecraft are considered Cylon models.
-*The "twelve Cylon models" notion is true and refers to all present Cylon models. Humanoids, the Centurion, and all Cylon spacecraft are considered Cylon models.
-**If the bulletproof Centurions and the Heavy Raider are accounted as separate models from the regular Centurion and Raider, this makes for twelve known models, which would also require the assumption that all Cylon models will be revealed with the airing of [[Final Cut]] and the outing of D'ianna Biers.
-*The "twelve Cylon models" notion is true and refers to all Cylon models, past and present. Humanoids, the Centurion, and current Cylon spacecraft are considered Cylon models.
-**This also makes exactly twelve under the assumption that either the bulletproof Centurion or the Heavy Raider is '''not''' a distinct model and that the Model 0005 Centurion is.
-*The "twelve Cylon models" notion is false.
-While in conclusion it's possible to claim that the "twelve Cylon models" notion refers only to humanoids, it is also possible, under a number of circumstances, that it refers to all Cylon models. Any argument that this is impossible usually relies upon making assumptions that may not be warranted—namely that spacecraft, past Cylon models, and different variants of the same model qualify as unique models, or that there are eight unique Cylon agents still hiding in the fleet other than Shelly Godfrey. While it remains an open question, one must not introduce extra assumptions on the part of one's opponents in order to weaken their position, a classic case of the [[Wikipedia:Straw man|straw man]] fallacy. In any case, the question has been submitted to [[Ronald D. Moore]] who may address the issue in a future [[Battlestar Blog]] entry or commentary podcast.
 [[Category:A to Z]]
 [[Category:Cylons]]
+[[Category:Cylons (RDM)]]
+[[Category:Organizations]]
 [[Category:RDM]]
-[[Category:TOS]]
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+[[fr:Cylons (RDM)]]