Beast Wars: Transformers is arguably the most important show in the Transformers franchise. It was the first in the series to be animated using CGI entirely, introduced important concepts to Transformers canon such as the spark, and featured a cast of characters not seen in the original toy line. Many of these characters have gone on to become staples of the franchise.
Given the show's small cast of characters, the battles were never as sprawling or explosive as in the original cartoon, and it meant that the characters had to use their brains more than their guns or fists to solve problems. For the Predacons in particular, intelligence was key in determining who had sway on the team and who stayed alive.
Quickstrike
Quickstrike was added to the Beast Wars roster during the show's second season along with the character Silverbolt, who was his polar opposite. This led the characters to be pitted against one another in their first few appearances on the show, though Silverbolt quickly solidified himself as one of the main characters while Quickstrike was utilized almost exclusively as comedic relief due to his big ego and diminutive size.
A basic grunt the entire time he was on the show, Quickstrike lived for fighting and would walk into most situations without thinking. In season 3 alone, he gets scrapped in back to back episodes when he charges the Maximal base by himself and tries to fight a "ghost." This single focus of his is the reason he's such an idiot, and Beast Wars fans wouldn't have it any other way.
Inferno
Megatron's most loyal soldier, Inferno was a vicious bot whose dedication to the royalty led him to commit some of the gruesome acts in the show's history, such as burning Tarantulas alive at the end of season 1. He also had a few screws loose, as evidenced by his maniacal laughter in the face of death.
Though Inferno was a loyal and violent foot soldier, he wasn't a particularly intelligent Predacon. He believed himself to be a literal ant, thought his stasis pod was an ant colony, and blundered into several traps during the show's third season. Still, that hasn't stopped Inferno from being a fan-favorite character in the Transformers franchise.
Waspinator
The show's unquestionable butt-monkey, Waspinator started out as just another grunt before the writers realized how fun it was to blow the character up and proceeded to do so in almost every episode. Given this propensity for being scrapped, it would seem that Waspinator lacked the foreknowledge to protect himself. Yet there's more to it than simply that.
Though Waspinator was a bit slow and easily manipulated by those around him, he showed a greater awareness for his surroundings than some of his other Predacons. Perhaps most importantly, he chose to desert the Predacons when it was clear that they were losing the Beast Wars, something no one else on the team was willing to concede.
Scorponok
Megatron's second-in-command during season 1, Scorponok was a wildly inconsistent character early on. Though always portrayed as loyal to his leader, there were some episodes where he spoke in monosyllabic sentences where he referred to himself in the first person while other times he was portrayed as the Predacons' tech guy.
Despite the lack of consistent characterization in the show's first dozen episodes, Scorponok quickly asserted himself as a lunk who blindly followed orders. There were moments when he showed an awareness of other characters' treachery, but he was never smart enough to bring them down and often got taken out as a result.
Terrorsaur
One of the show's most treacherous characters, Terrorsaur was a loud and squawking presence who most of the other characters could sniff out almost immediately. Despite his obvious attempts to take over the Predacons, he did manage two semi-successful coups that put Megatron out of the picture.
While Terrorsaur was more successful than G1 Starscream in his attempts to take over as leader of his respective team, his hit rate still wasn't great. There were at least three other times his schemes worked against him, and he quickly became another dim-witted lackey during the latter part of the show's first season.
Rampage
The Transformers' equivalent to Hannibal Lector, Rampage was made indestructible by a genetic experiment to recreate Starscream's spark, yet the process also resulted in him becoming a murderous psychopath. This made him a formidable and terrifying force during the show's latter seasons as well as a central focus in one of Beast Wars' best episodes.
While Rampage was never given much time to display his intellect on screen, there were moments where he was able to display his cunning, such as when he tracked down Depth Charge's ship and blew it up. He also knew better than to double-cross Megatron, lest he be subjected to torture by his commander.
Dinobot II
Dinobot II was introduced late into Beast Wars' run, and only made a handful of appearances. While this meant the character would never fully meet his potential to inflict emotional pain on the Maximals, he was able to assert himself as a cunning tracker.
In his first three appearances, Dinobot II was able to trick Depth Charge into a trap and capture him, take out Optimus Primal, and track down Blackarachnia when she briefly deserts the Maximals. Had the character been featured in more Transformers episodes, he might have proven himself to be just as cunning as some of his comrades.
Megatron
The leader of the Predacons, Megatron started out as a bumbling buffoon. He was behind just about every Predacon scheme early on, yet his plans were often shallow and very rarely panned out for the egomaniacal villain. Then the show's second season rolled around.
After the Vok nearly wiped out all life on Earth, Megatron began to plot and map out long cons. He mapped out when the Vok would next show up so he could take their power, discovered the Ark, and nearly altered the course of history so that his ancestors would win the Great War. He might not have accomplished any of his long-term goals, but he did prove himself as an adversary not to be trifled with.
Blackarachnia
Originally little more than eye candy for adult Transformers fans, Blackarachnia proved herself to be just as treacherous and cunning as her male Predacon counterparts when she helmed the effort to destroy the Maximal by planting a bomb underneath it. From there, she only grew bolder.
Throughout Beast Wars' run, Blackarachnia was constantly scheming to come out on top. She took control of a floating island to wipe out the Maximals, decrypted Megatron's files containing information on the Ark, and eventually joined up with the Maximals when Megatron's attempt to erase the Maximals from history threatened her own life. She might not have been among the most powerful Transformers, but she was shrewd enough to stay alive and avoid punishment.
Tarantulas
Though he started out as the Predacon with weird, cannibalistic tendencies, Tarantulas quickly outgrew that role and became Beast Wars' ultimate schemer. He built his own base, repaired the Decepticon warship Nemesis, and was poised on learning the secrets of the Vok.
Perhaps the event which best points to Tarantulas's intellect is when he attempted to escape the Earth. He realized before any of the other Cybertronians that the planet was doomed based solely on the scant encounters they had with alien monuments, and that insightfulness is what led him to survive much of the Beast Wars as a lone agent beholden to no one.