Were they loyal because she was a good leader, or because they had no other choices before Thorax showed them a way to stay fed that actually worked?

@vit  
Then why do they wear their boots on their feet? ;)

Yep. All of the changelings all became defected to the ponies and betrayed their Queen and Thorax overthrows her.

It wouldn’t be the last time.

“Maybe my rationing policy was a bit overzealous.”

@Background Pony #5BA8  

Thorax didn’t prove shit. He transformed into something different. That MAY hold some weight if you’re any other species, but when you’re a changeling capable of easily transforming to deceive that “proof” loses any credibility.

@Background Pony #6FEA  

The problem is they defected BEFORE that promise was upheld. What if Thorax was a rare exception? What if Thorax used his magic to transform into that to fool them into attacking the queen? People about to die will say anything to persuade the threat to do otherwise.
 
They screwed her over on something that wasn’t proven, had no guarantee and if it didn’t work would result in the colony to collapse.

@Background Pony #505B  
Well yeah, she was promising them food and was able to make good on that promise, not defecting from your leader when you have literally zero other options doesn’t make you loyal, and if she had any loyal bodyguards they sure weren’t the ones protecting her throne room…
 
@Background Pony #F35A  
IIRC it was confirmed that the Changeling in The Crystalling was thorax, we still don’t know about the other one.

@Background Pony #505B
 
Think it was confirmed by Jim that was Thorax

@Background Pony #5BA8  

They all served and continued to serve since their last attack FOUR seasons ago.
 
There was no evidence of drones defecting besides ONE changeling(two if you believe loneling wasn’t Thorax)…
 
@Background Pony #5BA8  

So you’re saying she didn’t have any sort of loyal royal bodyguards?

@Tim Timsen  
“I fed up with this wurld!”

Hunger sure ruins loyalty and morale. :)

I strongly disagree with the description, there was no evidence that these drones had anything close to lifelong loyalty to Chrysalis and it is far more likely that she was leading them through the promise of more food, which when Thorax proved that there was a better way the rest likely just went along with it as they had no real reason not to, and even if they were very loyal to her many real life armies have mutinied over food or less throughout history…
 
And also, Chrysalis likely had her most loyal subjects be the ones to impersonate the most important ponies since they are the ones most likely to not betray her once they have all that love power, and they are also the ones who didn’t get the memo on the new feeding method and will likely still be loyal to her providing she finds them before Thorax.

@Background Pony #505B  
Okay sure, I can see that, but he did indirectly wiped the floor with Chrysalis from that burst of love evergy and you’d know from Canterlot Wedding that a changeling’s power is determined by how much love energy they have at the time. Thorax having enough love energy to fling their Queen hard into her throne is probably what made them listen in the first place. Love energy is power in the changeling hive, and that drone bested the Queen because of it, and he claims he wasn’t starving, lots of reasons for the average changeling to give it a go, but thats my opinion.  
I fully agree that it should’ve been an actual fight though, but it would’ve been its own drawn out episode with DBZ references all over (zzz). I’m sure they did all they could to fit everything within two episodes and that burst of love energy decking the Queen will have to do until we can get an epic fanfic version…  
Also there’s no evidence that Thorax converted ALL the changelings, the amount that was shown approximately fits the amount that was in the throne room at the time, she still has plenty of changelings in the captials and Ponyville that were nowhere near the Hive, and only the top of the spire exploded instead of the whole thing, so she still likely has a pretty big army on her side. I see no reason that we won’t see her and a swarm of changelings attacking again at some point.
 
TL:DR: Thorax swatted the Queen with the sheer amount of Love he has and an actual fight simply can’t be slotted in due to an episode’s time limit. There is also no evidence at all that every single changeling turned into… whatever we are meant to call those colourful bug things.

Thorax - “Peace, Land, and Bread!”

Seems like if they’re constantly starving, they probably weren’t ever that loyal. I take it to mean that they probably weren’t even aware that there could be another way.
 
It’d be interesting to see Chrysalis and her changeling loyalists (who weren’t present at the hive) go up against Thorax’s subjects.

I love we just not too long ago had an episode where Twilight told Starlight you can’t solve everything with magic yet the finale of the same season they tried to teach that they completely contradict it and prove Twilight wrong. Way to stay focused writers.

@Stotter  
I know it’s enticing, what I argue was it shouldn’t have been enough to get her entire army to just immediately turn on her.  
@Background Pony #7BF1  
Promise backed up by what?

@Background Pony #505B  
Ordinary transformation can’t knock back the queen like that. If that didn’t prove what was said, it at least proved the greater power.

The promise of not being hungry anymore is a pretty good motivator.

@Fenix250  

 
Or it was just him using his changeling magic of TRANSFORMATION to fool them. There was no solid proof.@Eeveeinheat  
Precisely.

@Fenix250  
No not really. I’d give you an explaination of why but this isn’t the place to do that. You can PM if you want but my reasons are a little more meta.

@Pagan  
sigh… would it make you feel better if I said “King” Thorax had some sort of Love aura on him that naturally drew them into becoming those things despite of what they thought of it? And then they stuck with it because that dominating hunger wasn’t there anymore?  
…Actually that brings up a good question. Just HOW did they change in the first place when it was massive amounts of love energy bursting out of Thorax’s body that triggered the transformation (or breaking the curse depending on what it is)? Did he link to the other nearby changelings and gave them enough to do the same thing?

@Fenix250  
I have to disagree.

Guys? That speech had NOTHING to do with them betraying her and you all know it. Thorax practically EVOLVED right there in front of them when he freely shared his love energy, which caused that explosion and evolution to happen. They had physical proof of a way to live without the constant hunger that plagues them. He literally solved the #1 problem the Hive faced which was food, and food is a POWERFUL motivator for those who go starving for what is likely their whole entire life.