The complete guide to the Terminator robots

Hydrobot

The Robot: A Terminator that prefers to hang out in the murky depths to ensnare its prey, these fidgety Hunter-Killers trawl through water to collect organic subaquatic matter for study.

Appearances: The resistance capture one in Terminator Salvation to test their radio signal designed to destroy Skynet.

Special Skills: Its head splays open into a gigantic claw, revealing a huge drill where its tongue would be. Don't try and talk your way out of anything with these fellas.

T-1000000

The Robot: This deadly arachnid embraces the same fundamental design as the T-1000. Originally in place as a firewall-bot, it serves to protect Skynet's central core processors. Thankfully, technology hasn't advanced to a state wherein gigantic mimetic polyalloy spiders venture into our warm houses during winter.

Appearances: John and the T-800 come up against the evil defender in the climactic final scene of T2 3D: Battle Across Time.

Special Skills: It can transform any of its eight legs into sharp, stabbing weapons. Hello, nightmares!

T-1001

The Robot: Shirley Manson IS the T-1001. A step up from Terminator 2s liquid metal bot, the T-1001 is capable of the same methods of infiltration.

Appearances: Introduced at the beginning of The Sarah Connor Chronicles second season, it serves as the CEO of Zeira Corp while masquerading as former company chief Catherine Weaver.

Special Skills: The usual mimickry applies, but its sheer out of the box methods of shapeshifting are showcased when the Weaver T-1001 transforms into a urinal.

HK-Aerial

The Robot: The leading machine in Skynet's airborne squad, the Hunter-Killer Aerial offers plenty of support to smaller, ground-based Terminators. Fully automated, it is a ruthless, effective addition to its fleet.

Appearances: The very first Terminator ever seen onscreen in the franchise, a gigantic HK-Aerial looms into view during The Terminator's opening war sequence. Modified versions (due to the altered timelines) can be spotted in Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines and Terminator Salvation.

Special Skills: If the mere sight of an HK-Aerial wasn't menacing enough, its impressive 110 foot wingspan enables it to pack in a veritable arsenal of weapons, including plasma lasers, missiles and cannons.

Harvester

The Robot: A towering biped Hunter-Killer, the Harvester primarily functions as a human acquisition robot. After herding them up it harvests their stem cells and feeds the data back to Skynet. It's this technology which led to the development of real human flesh in their labs for use on future humanoid Terminators.

Appearances: Popping up out of nowhere in Terminator Salvation, one feisty Harvester plucks a load of resistance fighters from a gas station before chasing down Marcus, Kyle and Star.

Special Skills: Its sheer bulk allows it to transport humans and Moto-Terminators, which is all well and good but no way near as impressive as the electrically-charged plasma cannon mounted on its back. One hit from that and its hasta la vista, baby.

T-888

The Robot: A modified version of the T-800, the T-888 is an infiltration unit bearing living flesh over a hyperalloy endoskeleton. On account of its stronger, updated Coltan skeleton it can withstand severe damage. It also possesses a learning CPU that enables it to engage in more advanced inter-personal dynamics than its predecessor.

Appearances: The standard Terminator across both seasons of The Sarah Connor Chronicles, if theres a baddie with a stiff walk - itll be a T-888.

Special Skills: Unlike the T-800, it possesses a phenomenal flesh regeneration rate. This affords them the opportunity to withstand maximum damage and maintain their disguise for decades.

TOK715

The Robot: The background on the TOK715 is somewhat mysterious, but it shares similarities with many of Skynet's humanoid infiltration units. The closest series it could be compared to is the T-888.

Appearances: One of the main characters in The Sarah Connor Chronicles, a TOK715 is sent back to protect John. Based on a future resistance fighter named Alison Young, her adopted robot name is Cameron.

Special Skills: Lending support to one possible theory that the TOK715 is an advanced variation of the T-888, it demonstrates a similar endoskeletal mainframe while also increasing its human components. The Cameron bot is seen eating, drinking and crying - make her a fine infiltration unit, indeed.

T-X

The Robot: One of Skynet's most advanced infiltration units, the T-X is a hybrid of two independent designs - the T-800 and the T-1000. The combination of the standard endoskeleton chassis with a mimetic polyalloy liquid metal cover makes this one of the most efficient machines to come off the assembly line.

Appearances: Sent back in time to kill John Connors future resistance officers, the T-X makes her only mark on the series in Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines.

Special Skills: As well as packing the deadly power of its unique liquid-skeleton combo, the T-X carries a colossal arsenal of built-in weaponry. From a standard plasma cannon to a giant flamethrower - there ain't nothing it cant terminate.

T-1000

The Robot: A breakthrough for Skynet at the time of its creation in 2029, the T-1000 embraces a variety of advanced technological possibilities through its mimetic polyalloy liquid form.

Appearances: Sent back through time by Skynet in Terminator 2: Judgment Day, the T-1000's virgin mission is to destroy John Connor. It spends the entire film masquerading as other people and stealing police vehicles.

Special Skills: It can mimic human voices, assume their form, shapeshift into lethal objects... oh, and emptying a clip into it wont do jack. Any time a piece of its metal is chipped away, it simply relocates its main body and attaches itself.

T-800/ T-850, Model 101

The Robot: The first cybernetic organism to reduce everyone in the world to tears, the T-800 Model 101 is the franchises central Terminator figure. A humanoid infiltration unit, its endoskeleton is sheathed in live human tissue, allowing it to blend into populated areas.

Appearances: Its spectacular debut came in The Terminator, when it tracked down Sarah Connor. Another model was reprogrammed by John in the future and sent back through time to protect him in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The version seen in Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines is the T-850 variation.

Special Skills: Its neural net processor harbours the possibility of advanced learning, that may or may not end in the acquisition of choice slang phrases.

Gem Seddon

Gem Seddon is GamesRadar+'s west coast Entertainment News Reporter, working to keep all of you updated on all of the latest and greatest movies and shows on streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime. Outside of entertainment journalism, Gem can frequently be found writing about the alternative health and wellness industry, and obsessing over all things Aliens and Terminator on Twitter.