ZGMF-X88S Gaia Gundam
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This article is about a fictional weapon from the Cosmic Era of the anime Gundam metaseries.
In late CE 73, ZAFT creates a new series of advanced mobile suits to succeed their previous generation of Gundams, which were all lost in the previous war. Since the Treaty of Junius bans the military use of the Neutron Jammer Canceller, these new Gundams use conventional battery power instead. However, technological improvements over the last two years mean that battery efficiency is improved, and Phase Shift armor is less power intensive than it had once been. To further improve endurance, ZAFT also introduces the new Deuterion Beam Energy Transfer System, which allows a properly equipped battleship to remotely recharge a mobile suit's battery.
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[edit] ZGMF-X88S (RGX-03) Gaia
One of these new suits is the ZGMF-X88S Gaia, a transformable unit specializing in ground combat. In mobile suit mode, the Gaia is armed with a large beam rifle, a pair of beam sabers, and head-mounted CIWS. For ground combat, it can also transform into a quadrupedal mobile armor mode similar to a cross between the TMF/A-802 BuCUE and the TMF/A-803 LaGOWE. In this mode, the beam rifle is mounted on right side and is still useable, and is supplemented by a pair of shoulder-mounted beam assault cannons and four CIWS. In addition, for close range combat in mobile armor mode, the Gaia Gundam has two back-mounted wings, which each mount a beam blade for slicing through enemy mobile suits. (A similar pair of wing-mounted beam blades is later installed on the Fatum-01 backpack/sub-flight lifter of Athrun Zala's ZGMF-X19A Infinite Justice Gundam.)
The ZGMF-X88S Gaia uses the operating system Generation Unrestricted Network Drive Assault Module.
The Gaia is initially tested at Armory One by Riika Sheder, a defective Coordinator who could only see with artificial assistance. However, before ZAFT can bring it into active service, Stellar Loussier of the Earth Alliance's 81st Independent Mobile Battalion steals the mobile suit and escapes with it to the battleship Girty Lue, where it is given the new model number RGX-03. The Gaia is later transferred to Earth and operates from the carrier John Paul Jones, where it remains until Stellar launches a solo sortie against orders at the Lodonia laboratory facility. There, the Gaia is disabled by the ZGMF-X23S Saviour and ZGMF-X56S Impulse, and Stellar is captured. The recovered Gaia is then recovered by the Minerva, and shipped back to PLANT after being repaired.
Later in the war, a Gaia is acquired by Terminal with an alternate orange and yellow color scheme. The alternate colored Gaia is piloted by Andrew Waltfeld, which, according to the "Destiny IQ" section of the official Japanese Seed Destiny website, is indeed the original Gaia unit.
[edit] GAT-X399/Q Wild Dagger
In addition, the Earth Alliance used data from the Gaia to create the GAT-X399/Q Wild Dagger, a prototype using components of the GAT-02L2 Dagger L that is initially intended to test the viability of the design for mass production. The Wild Dagger is later put into limited production, with a total of 72 being produced for use in counter-insurgency units. Like the Gaia, the Wild Dagger can transform into a quadrupedal mobile armor mode for high-speed hit-and-run attacks. In this mode, it is armed with a forward-firing Gatling gun and a rear-firing cannon, and the waist-mounted beam sabers pivot outward to function similarly to the Gaia's wing blades. The rear-firing cannon is used to finish the job if its Gatling gun and beam sabers prove inadequate in a hit-and-run attack. The Wild Dagger also includes a back-mounted turret that can mount a variety of weapons, including beam cannons and missile launchers. Additional armament options include replacing the Gatling with a beam boomerang and mounting missile launchers on shoulder hardpoints.
A special ZAFT variant of the Gaia is the ZGMF-X56S/ζ Gaia Impulse, which is a modified version of the ZGMF-X56S Impulse with a new Leg Flyer, enabling the Impulse to emulate the function of the Gaia as a ground attack unit.
[edit] Specifications
[edit] ZGMF-X88S (RGX-03) Gaia
Manufacturer: Integrated Design Bureau
User(s): Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty, Earth Alliance, Terminal
Unit type: prototype transformable attack use mobile suit
First Deployment: 2 October, CE 73
Head height: 17.80 meters (mobile suit mode)
Weight: 69.85 metric tons
Special equipment: Variable Phase Shift armor, Deuterion Beam Energy Transfer System
Powerplant: Ultracompact energy battery
Armament: MMI-GAU25A 20mm multi-barrel CIWS x2, MA-81R beam assault cannon x2, MMI-GAU1717 12.5mm multi-barrel CIWS x4, MR-Q17X "Griffon 2" beam blade x2, MA-M941 "Vajra" beam saber x2, MA-BAR71XE high-energy beam rifle x1, MMI-RS1 mobile shield x1
Pilot: Riika Sheder, Stellar Loussier, Andrew Waltfeld
[edit] GAT-X399/Q Wild Dagger
Manufacturer: Earth Alliance
User: Earth Alliance
Unit type: limited production transformable counter-insurgency mobile suit
Head height: unknown
Weight: unknown
Special equipment: multipurpose turret mount
Powerplant: Ultracompact energy battery
Armament: M2M5 "Todesschrecken" 12.5mm automatic CIWS x2, ES04B beam saber x2, 46mm 6-barrel Gatling gun x1, 175 mm multipurpose smoothbore tail cannon x1, M703K beam carbine x1, shield x1
Optional armament: cannon turret (dual cannon x1, howitzer x1), missile turret (8-tube missile launcher x1, 9.1m anti-ship sword x2), 5-tube shoulder missile launcher x2, small beam gun x2, "Midas Messer" beam boomerang (replaces Gatling gun)
[edit] Trivia
- Gaia along with Chaos and Abyss are named for aspects of Greek Mythology.
- Gaia is a Goddess and thought of as Mother Earth which makes it appropriate that it is initially piloted by a female
- While the unit is not limited to land-based battles, or even to staying on the Earth itself, its quadruped form definitely gives it a certain visual connection to the Earth.
- ZGMF-X88S Gaia is the only one of the five "Second Stage" ZAFT Gundams (ZGMF-X23S Saviour Gundam, ZGMF-X24S Chaos Gundam, ZGMF-X31S Abyss Gundam, ZGMF-X56S Impulse Gundam, and ZGMF-X88S Gaia Gundam) to survive the events of Gundam SEED Destiny.
- In Gundam SEED, it is established that all of the major powers' machines have "hand plugs" that allow them to recognize and use weapons; Earth Alliance machines' hand plugs can only recognize Earth Alliance mobile suit weapons, etc. However, Andrew Waltfeld's custom Gaia is seen picking up the (EA-based) Strike Rouge's rifle after the Rouge drops it when its arm is severed. Either this was a mistake by the writers, or Andy's Gaia unit has been modified with multiple hand plugs like certain other units in the SEED universe have been.
- The Gaia Gundam Andrew Waltfeld Custom's orange, gold, and black paint scheme is an homage to the TMF/A-803 LaGOWE that Andrew piloted in battle against Kira Yamato's GAT-X105 Strike Gundam during the original Gundam SEED. Although not seen in the episode in which it appears, the model kit of the custom Gaia also bears Andrew Waltfeld's tiger emblem on its right shoulder.
- The S in its model code stands for "Second Stage".
- In the only time in Phase 39, the only episode the Gaia is being piloted by Andy, Kira's suit at the time is the Strike Rouge, in the original Strike color scheme. This is further homage to Kira and Andy's "final" battle in SEED. The fact that after Kira gets the Strike Freedom later in the episode, Andy is no longer seen fighting further proves this.
[edit] References
